Summer at the Beach
by FaithinBones
Summary: This is a Bonesology Challenge Bones fanfic. To help Booth recover from his near fatal injury, Brennan and Hodgins rent a house on the beach at Norfolk, Virginia for a family vacation. They plan to invite anyone that wants to vacation with them much to the irritation of Seeley Booth. (Season 11)
1. Chapter 1

(Season 11)

A/N: This week's Bonesology challenge will span a couple of weeks. Write a multi-chapter story about the team renting a huge beach house for the summer. Not all team members have to stay there at the same time. Some can stay one week, some others, some all summer. You choose. Length of story is up to you, but it should be multi-chapter. The setting is beginning of season 11, after Booth has recovered from his injury.

I don't own Bones.

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Once Booth was discharged from the hospital, Brennan picked him up from the front of the hospital and with the help of the nurse who had wheeled him down from his room, Booth was soon buckled into the passenger seat of the SUV. Once the nurse was gone, Booth complained. "Bones I don't like seat belts you know that. What if we have a wreck? The seat belt will rupture me for sure."

Wary of Booth's logic, Brennan loosened the seat belt and slid the loop that should cross his chest so that it was now behind him. Now the only restraint he had was the part that went across his waist. "This isn't a perfect solution, but it will do for now."

He wanted to just unbuckle it completely, but Booth knew that it would just trigger an argument and he wasn't in the mood for a fight. "Let's go home Bones."

"About that, there has been a change in plans." Brennan closed the passenger door, strode around the driver's side and hopped in. While she closed the door, she placed the key into the ignition. "We aren't going home."

Since this was news to Booth, he turned to stare at his wife. "What do you mean? Where are we going?"

She had known this moment would come, but she still hadn't really formulated a way to tell him of their new plans yet. "You need rest and it's been a long time since we've actually gone on vacation and since you can't return to work for a minimum of six weeks, I've rented a beach house in Norfolk. It has five bedrooms and four bathrooms. It's has wheelchair access which means access to the house should be easier for you and it's right on the beach. It's a two story building. Two bedrooms are downstairs and three are upstairs. There is a screened in veranda and a hot tub although you can't use the hot tub since you do have an open wound. There is a fully functioning kitchen and a living room and an entertainment room that the children will enjoy . . ."

Since Brennan didn't seem to have any plans to stop describing the house, Booth held up his hand. "Stop . . . just stop." He knew she must have started planning this as soon as he was placed in the hospital, but he had had no input at all and he didn't want to go to any beach house. "I want to go home Bones. I don't want to go on vacation. I'm not in any shape to enjoy the beach or a beach house. I . . ."

"We're going to the beach house, Booth." Brennan was determined to get her way. "Christine and Hank are already there. With Angela, Hodgins and Michael Vincent."

Angry that Brennan was making plans without him, Booth exhaled deeply to argue and started to cough. Holding his hands over his side, Booth feared he was going to hurt himself since the wound in his stomach was barely on the road to healing and his blood loss made him feel as weak as a kitten.

Worried about his cough and his wound, Brennan opened the door, hopped out of the truck and rushed around to the other side of the truck. The door open, she stepped up on the step bar and placed her hand over Booth's hands. "Booth you mustn't cough."

Struggling to stop coughing, Booth nodded his head and somehow found a way to stop. "Damn it that hurt."

While Brennan lifted Booth's shirt to inspect the bandage over his wound, a nurse ran out of the building and over to the truck. "Is there a problem?"

Brennan stepped down and turned to face the nurse. "He was coughing and it caused Booth great pain. I think he's alright."

Peering into the truck, the nurse placed her hand over Booth's wrist. "Are you alright Sir?"

The pain fading, Booth nodded his head. "Yeah, I'm okay." His face was pale and there were beads of sweat on his forehead, but he was sure he was alright or as right as he could be.

A little hesitant, the nurse released Booth's wrist and turned to face Brennan. "If things change and he thinks something is wrong, please bring him back here."

Brennan nodded her head, closed the passenger door and walked back around the truck to the driver's side. "We're going to be in Norfolk, but I'm sure they have adequate hospitals if we need them." Once in the truck, Brennan started the engine and pulled out of the drive through in front of the hospital. "We'll be in Norfolk in four hours, Booth. Please let me know if you need to stop at any time. There is no reason to rush. Christine and Hank are fine and they'll have fun playing on the beach while they wait for us to arrive."

Resigned that he had no control over his life at the moment, Booth nodded his head. "We're going to talk about this."

"I know." Brennan was certain that once Booth was at the beach house he might like it, Brennan patted his knee. "It really is a lovely place. Hodgins has rented this house before and when he told me about it, I knew that it would suit our needs. You need rest Booth and a chance to recover. You won't do that if you're too close to work. I know you and I know you will try to return to work before you're ready. We will be four hours away from work and the temptation will lessen with distance."

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As they pulled into the driveway of their rented summer home, Brennan cleared her throat. "I'm not the only one whose name is on the lease, Booth. Hodgins and I have rented this house. Our lease is for three months." She heard Booth inhale and quickly cut him off. "I'm not saying we're staying for three months although we will if you decide you need more time to recuperate. Hodgins and I talked it over and decided that it would be ideal to have a summer place available for our family and friends to use if they are looking for a vacation spot near the ocean. Max and Russ can use it and so can Cam and Michelle. I invited Aubrey, but he hasn't committed to coming yet. Also I think that some of my interns may benefit from such a restful place to vacation and I told them that they may come if they are so inclined. Of course, we will use one of the bedrooms downstairs and Hodgins and Angela get one of the bedrooms upstairs. Our children can sleep in the same room and that will leave two extra bedrooms for our guests plus the couch in the living room and the hammock on the veranda are available if we have an overflow of guests. I supposed they could sleep on the floor with blankets if it becomes necessary."

Appalled at Brennan's open invitation, Booth shook his head. "Where the hell is the peace and quiet, Bones? I like my privacy you know that. You've invited everyone that we know for God's sake."

"You're exaggerating, Booth. There will be peace and quiet for the first two weeks of our stay." Brennan knew she hadn't explained it as carefully as she should have. "The first two weeks are for just our family and the Hodgins/Montenegro family. No other guests are invited. You should be feeling much better in two weeks. After the two weeks, if you haven't had any reversals in your health then we can have company visit. I have no idea who will be coming since it's an open invitation and Hodgins may have invited people we don't know. On the other hand, perhaps no one else will be interested in coming."

Giving Brennan a look of pure disbelief, Booth snorted. "It's a beach house, on the beach and it's free, who the hell wouldn't want to come? I assume you aren't charging anyone to stay with us."

"Of course not." Brennan found that an odd question, but answered it anyway. "Why would I charge someone to stay here? I'm not running a hotel or motel."

Unable to prevent it, Booth rolled his eyes. "If you say so." Unbuckling his seat belt, Booth opened the passenger door which prompted Brennan to open her door and run around the truck just in time to help her husband get out of the truck. Since he was heavy and much bigger than she was, all she could do was try to cushion his fall if he fell to the ground.

Carefully stepping down to the driveway, Booth held his hand on his side and tried to will the pain he felt to go away. "You know if Jared wasn't already dead, I'd kill him." He knew it was a tasteless joke and he should be sorry that his brother was dead, but at the moment he was in an unforgiving mood. He hadn't dealt with how he felt about Jared's death yet and he knew he should be mourning his death, but right now he didn't have it in him to care. At the moment, he was angry with Jared and he didn't want to think about why. "Come on, show me this beach house you're so excited about."

Brennan chose to overlook the surliness in Booth's voice. She knew he was in pain and he hated for people to plan his life which is what she had done. Linking her arm with his arm, Brennan led her husband to the aluminum wheelchair ramp that led up to the wrap around porch.

His right hand on the rail, Booth used it to help steady his gait and to pull himself up the ramp to the porch. Impressed with the broadness of the porch, he liked the rocking chairs and straight-back chairs lined up against the wall. The front door was solid wood with a large oval glass inset. The glass was frosted glass with a fleur-de-lis design which Booth thought was pretty cool. Glancing back at his SUV, Booth sighed and opened the door. Once inside, Brennan followed him into the living room, closed the door behind her and pointed to the door inset in the left side of the far wall. "That bedroom is ours."

The children, who had been in the kitchen eating ice cream, heard their mother's voice and became excited. Christine slipped off of her chair while Hodgins lifted Hank from his highchair and placed him on the floor. Hank was already learning to walk and could walk, fall, walk with the best of them. "Mommy, Daddy." Christine raced to her father's side and threw her arms around his hips which caused him to grunt and wince in pain.

"Hey Baby." Booth produced a weak smiled for his daughter and rested his hand on her shoulder. "Did you have fun today?" Before she could answer, Hank managed to toddle over to where his father was and waved his fists in the air. "Da Da." Booth knew his son wanted to be picked up, but there was no way he could do it.

Brennan realized that she needed to save the moment before Hank started to cry, so she leaned over and picked up her son. Standing as close as she could to Booth, she allowed Hank to lean towards his father and touch him. "Da Da . . . Da Da."

Booth placed his large hand around his son's face and kissed the boy. "I'm sorry I can't hold you Tiger, but Daddy is sick right now."

The boy didn't understand why his father didn't take him and began to whine. Christine shook her head and sighed. "He's been crying all day."

Glancing at the couch, Booth pointed at it. "Bones, maybe I can sit down and you can put him on my lap."

"That sounds like a bad idea." Brennan stared at Booth's mid-section and imagined their son kicking or punching Booth where his bandage covered wound was. "Maybe with a pillow covering your stomach . . . Christine go grab one of the pillows from our bed and bring it to me."

While Christine ran to get the pillow, Booth moved over to the couch to sit down. Observing Booth from the kitchen doorway, Hodgins, Angela and Michael Vincent watched the man sit down carefully while Brennan waited for the pillow. Not really wanting to intrude on the family moment, Hodgins motioned for Angela and Michael Vincent to follow him and they went out to the beach using the back door. They knew they had time to visit with Booth later, but his children needed his undivided attention at the moment.

Hurrying into the living room, Christine handed the pillow to her father and watched him as he placed it across his midsection. Staring at her father with just a touch of anxiety, she wondered if he was going to be okay. "Can I sit next to you, Daddy?"

"You sure can Baby girl." Booth patted the couch cushion and kept the pillow spread across his stomach. After she was seated, he patted her leg and turned his attention towards Brennan. "Okay, Bones, I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

Carefully, Brennan placed Hank on Booth's lap and held her hand on the child's shoulder to make sure he didn't fall to the floor. There wasn't a lot of room on Booth's lap with the pillow in the way, but the boy seemed satisfied and grabbed Booth's offered hand. Placing one of Booth's fingers in his mouth, Hank gummed it in satisfaction while Booth worried that his finger was dirty.

Thankful that her family was together again, Brennan sat down next to her husband, her hand gripping Hank's leg. "Hodgins and Angela should be here. Perhaps they are swimming."

Booth didn't really care where they were, he had his family around him and that's all he'd wanted since he'd been shot. His family was the medicine he needed to get better and anything else was just icing on the cake.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

That evening as Booth lay on his bed with Brennan beside him, he cleared his throat to get her attention. "I don't want to stay three months. The doctor said I might be able to go back to work in six weeks . . . and I guess I'm going to see if I can get my old job back at the Hoover."

It was what they had talked about at the hospital the day after he woke from surgery so Brennan wasn't surprised. "Good. You're a good instructor, but a better investigator."

His hand finding her hand under the cover, Booth sighed. "We need to see what Padme wants to do about Jared's body. Since it's mostly ashes, she should have him cremated and then we can just bury his ashes with Pops and Gram, if that's what she wants to do."

"Booth, Jared and Padme were separated." Apparently Jared hadn't told his brother that before he died. "I'll check, but I think Padme will leave that decision to you . . . I could be wrong, but she seemed to have started a new life without him when I talked to her. They were living in separate homes although he was showering her with presents trying to get back into her good graces."

"Of course." Booth closed his eyes and tried to be more forgiving of his brother, but couldn't. "My God, I'm glad Pops wasn't around to see this mess. Jared was such an idiot . . . And I was an idiot to get involved in his shit."

Brennan gripped his hand and turned her head to see the side of her husband's face. "Don't Booth. You saved a lot of undercover agents by making sure the list didn't get into the wrong hands and you tried to save Jared. None of this is your fault. You did what you did because that is who you are. Jared is dead and that part of your life is over. Don't berate yourself for being you. You needed to help him fix the mess he helped create and it didn't turn out like you hoped it would. It's done and we should move on."

He wanted to accept that Jared's death wasn't his fault and logically he knew that it wasn't, but he still felt that he should have found a way to fix it all. "Jared never could get his shit together. All the opportunities he had and he wasted them . . . He was too much like Dad . . . just too much."

She heard the anger in his voice, but she didn't say anything. Booth needed to work his way through what had happened and she hoped being away from the District would help him. He needed to distance himself from the past and this beach house they were staying in was part of it. Friends, family, new surroundings, that was her plan and her plan would work. She knew Booth and she knew how to fix him.

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Is this interesting? Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	2. Chapter 2

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I appreciate it.

I don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

The day was warm and the water was inviting, but Booth was stuck sitting on the beach in a chair while he watched his family and the Hodgins/Montenegro family play in the water. Brennan had slathered his exposed skin with sun screen and found a Phillies baseball cap for him to wear before he had left the house. His shorts were new and so was the shirt he was wearing. Brennan had shopped before Booth had been released from the hospital and drove them to Norfolk. Everyone in the family had new clothes for their vacation much to the delight of their daughter who had squealed when she found out that she had two new bathing suits as well as new shorts and tops. Booth didn't mind the new clothes, but he liked t-shirts and Brennan hadn't bought any. "Booth you can't really lift your arms high enough to put a t-shirt on. You need to wear shirts with buttons for a few weeks. You don't have to button the shirts if you don't want to."

Since his stomach was covered with bandages, the last thing he wanted to do was scare the children so he wore the shirts buttoned up. Bored and not really able to remedy the situation, Booth watched Brennan hold Hank in her arms while she stood in thigh deep water. Christine and Michael Vincent were busy collecting sea shells along the shore while Hodgins and Angela played loudly in the water. Booth admired the maroon swimsuit that Brennan was wearing and he especially liked the cleavage it showed. The suit was a one piece so it emphasized her curves which Booth loved so much. Brennan was definitely a woman he admired and he had always loved the shape of her body.

His eyes fastened on Brennan's breasts, Booth was startled when a hand came down firmly on the top of his shoulder. Looking up, he found Max staring down at him. The older man's face was filled with pity which irritated the hell out of the invalid FBI Agent. Booth didn't want anyone to feel sorry for him. He'd done a soldier's job and he had done it to the best of his ability. If he got hurt in the process then so be it. "What the hell are you doing here? Bones said we weren't going to have any visitors until next week."

"Since when am I a visitor?" Max felt a little annoyed with Booth's apparent hostility and glanced at his daughter who was waving at him. "I'm family and I decided to come stay for a while and see if I can help out that's all."

Brennan left the water and with Hank still in her arms, moved up onto the beach where Booth was sitting. "Dad what are you doing here? I told you not to come until at least next week."

Max sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "I came to see if I could help out around here and I'm not a visitor I'm your Dad." Holding his hands open towards the baby in her arms, Max smiled at his grandson. "Let me take the little tiger. You can visit with your husband and me and Hank can build a sandcastle or something."

Since Hank was eager to go to his grandfather, Brennan handed the child over to Max and watched her father move down the beach to be closer to the water, picking up a bright red plastic bucket near a pile of towels on the way. Moving a chair closer to Booth, Brennan sat down. "How are you feeling? Are you in any pain?"

"I sure wish you would quit asking me that." Booth wasn't feeling that bad and the wound though bright pink and puckered, looked like it was healing.

Unperturbed with Booth's comment, Brennan glanced down the beach to check on Christine and Hank. "I am merely making sure you're alright and that you are not hiding any health issues from me. Now are you in pain or not?"

"Not." Booth shifted in his chair and watched Hodgins swoop up from the water, pick up Angela and throw her a few feet away into the water. Her shriek of laughter brought a frown to Booth's face. "I'm glad someone is having fun."

Rolling her eyes, Brennan tried to be patient with her husband. He was rarely sick and when he was he wasn't a very good patient. "I'm sorry that you are unable to go swimming, but ocean water is notorious for containing human waste in it and your wound could easily become infected. The last thing you need right now is a flesh eating bacterial infection."

The disgust on his face was hard to miss. "Human waste?"

"Well, some areas are worse than others." Brennan glanced at Max and Hank and watched as Max filled a bucket with sand and upended it next to Hank. "Eighty percent of pollution to the marine environment comes from runoff. Farms, septic tanks, cars and trucks, faulty or overwhelmed sewerage treatment plants. It's hard to control and some marine areas are more polluted than others. That's why it is important not to swim in the ocean or Gulf of Mexico if you have an open wound."

A slight chill running down his back, Booth shivered. "I didn't know that. Should we be letting the kids play in the water?"

"I checked and there are no current swimming advisories for this area." Brennan smiled when Hank pushed the tiny wall Max had built of sand over and patted his hands in the mess he'd made. The child found it hilarious and laughed. "It's alright. I just don't want you to take any needless risks that's all."

"I guess Max is going to stay." Booth rubbed his forehead. "Maybe he can watch the kids and we can go inside for a while. I've got a headache."

Concerned, Brennan stood up, leaned over and inspected her husband's eyes. "I thought you said you weren't in any pain."

Brennan's cleavage now very close to his face, Booth closed his eyes and silently listed off three of the lesser known saints. Sex was out for now and she wasn't helping the situation. His eyes open once more, he gazed into Brennan's concerned face. "It's just the sun that's all. I'm thirsty and I want to go inside for a while. Maybe take a nap. It's no big deal."

Her hand on Booth's forehead, Brennan didn't feel a fever, but since he had a headache she thought it might be better if he left the sunny beach. "Alright. Let me tell Max we're leaving and then we'll go in for a while. I need to renew my sunscreen anyway. I used the last of the bottle I had out here on the children a little while ago."

Careful to make sure he kept a hand on the chair as he stood up, Booth felt a little wobbly, but that soon passed. He really hated to be sick. Once he was free from the chair, Brennan strode down the beach to talk to Max and then hurried back up the beach when she noticed her husband walking unaided towards the house. Catching up with him, she hooked her arm around his arm and pointed at some clouds in the distance. "The weatherman may be right. It might rain after all."

Booth accepted Brennan's aide though he wanted to refuse it and walked slowly up the beach. "Why am I so weak still? I told you I lost half my blood, but you said no. I bet it takes time to make new blood and that's why I'm weak. I'm not running on a full tank."

This particular argument getting old, Brennan tried to be patient. "You didn't lose half your blood, Booth. I told you that and besides you were given blood transfusions. You aren't walking around with half your blood gone."

"Well, it seems like it." Booth knew he was wrong, but he wasn't willing to admit it. Besides, he wanted to argue and for the last three weeks he hadn't been able to get Brennan to accommodate him. It made him feel more of an invalid that he actually was. "I bet if you poked me with a needle you might not get any blood to come out for a while."

"That is nonsense Booth." Brennan felt that Booth was goading her and that he wanted to argue. She wanted him to have peace and quiet, but he seemed to be bored with that peace. "When we get into the house, I'm going to look for a needle and I'm going to poke you with it. Perhaps then you will see you're wrong."

Amused, Booth laughed. "Thank you."

"For what?" A little confused, Brennan stopped forcing Booth to stop. "What are you thanking me for?"

Her skin a light red where it had been exposed to the sun, Booth placed his hand on her warm face, leaned forward and kissed her. "Thank you for arguing with me. I haven't been able to get you to do that since the day I woke up after surgery. You've been treating me with kid gloves. Even outside the hospital, I thought we were going to fight about coming here and I started coughing and you kinda of freaked and then you just told me what we were going to do, no argument. You know I like it when we have differences of opinion and I hate it when you just ignore me or agree with me when I know you think I'm full of shit. So thank you for arguing with me. I needed that."

Sometimes Booth confused her, but in this case she knew what he was talking about. She enjoyed bickering with him and had missed the back and forth for the last three weeks. "Do you still wish me to poke you with a pin? It won't be a problem for me."

His arm around her waist, Booth chuckled and started them walking towards the house. "No, I think I'll pass. I need all the blood I have thank you very much."

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So, is this still interesting?


	3. Chapter 3

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I appreciate it

I don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

After Booth was released from the hospital, he had called Padme every day for two weeks, but each call had gone to voicemail. Determined not to give up, Booth tried once more and to his surprise, his sister-in-law answered the phone. "This is Seeley, I'd like to talk to you if I may."

 _What about?_

"Jared's body has been released from the Jeffersonian. I asked them to hold onto his body until I could talk to you . . . if you could tell me where you want his body sent, I can arrange to have him sent there." Booth didn't want her to think she would have to pay for all of the funeral expenses. "I want to contribute to his funeral if that's okay."

 _How fascinating that you're interested in him now. Where were you when he really needed you? He tried so hard, but you quit helping him and then he had to rely on Kevin. Where were you when he needed you? He's dead, so big deal. Now you want to help._

Her words were meant to cut him like a knife, but Booth didn't feel her words at all. "Jared was the one who joined up with a criminal gang. He made the decision to rob a very dangerous man for money. It wasn't until he realized that the payoff was to buy a list of undercover FBI agents that he thought what he was doing was wrong. I tried to help him out of that mess. But that mess was his doing not mine and his death was also his fault not mine. He chose the path he took, no one forced him on that path."

 _How very convenient for you. You got him killed, you take care of his body. You're disgusting. He needed help, but God forbid you help him. He had to go to Kevin, he was desperate for money._

Booth knew it was useless to say anything but he answered her anyway. "He drank too much so he couldn't keep a job. He was arrested for public intoxication several times. How long was I supposed to take care of him? When was he supposed to take care of himself?"

 _He was your brother. Family obligations never end. Take care of Jared, Seeley. You refused to help him when he was alive now take care of him when it doesn't matter anymore._

The call ended and Booth sighed. He knew that Padme was bitter, but he had escaped from an alcoholic father as a child and though he had tried to help Jared, the man had refused to help himself. Booth couldn't live Jared's life and there was no way he was going to let him take him down with him.

Dark thoughts of his brothers' body burning in the van and Booth choked back tears that threatened to fall. _He almost did take me down with him, the bastard._

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Max was playing video games in the entertainment room upstairs with the children while the adults watched a movie downstairs. Everyone had a beer in their hand except for Booth who was drinking from a bottle of water. The movie wasn't really something Booth was interested in, so he finally gave up, slowly stood up, moved carefully over to the front door and walked out onto the veranda. The night was very warm and Booth appreciated the fact that he could flip a switch next to the front door to turn on the overhead ceiling fan. Sitting on a rocking chair beneath the fan, Booth stared at the star filled sky in the distance and tried to make out some of the constellations he knew.

Brennan had waited for a few minutes to see if he would come back inside then followed Booth outside. Sitting on a straight back chair located next to Booth's chair, Brennan sat down and crossed her legs. "Are you alright?"

"Yes." Booth continued to gaze at the stars while he told her about the call to Padme. Once that sad tale was done, Booth turned to look at Brennan. "I guess I'll have to contact a funeral home and have his body picked up. I'm going to have Jared cremated. He's just bones anyway. We couldn't have an open casket at a funeral for bones . . . He quit going to church, so I don't know if I should have a funeral. The only ones that would come would be us and Cam. I think I'll just bury him with Pops and Grams. No ceremony."

Furious that Padme would treat Booth the way she did, Brennan clinched her fists and contained her temper. She knew that being angry wouldn't help Booth and she wanted to help him. "We can have a ceremony at the gravesite. It doesn't matter if there are only five of us there . . . You did what you could for Jared. He made unwise decisions and those decisions led to his death."

"Yeah." Booth thought about the little boy that Jared had been. "Jared was afraid of Dad. Why wouldn't he be? When we moved in with Pops, Jared changed. He became a happy little guy. I didn't even know he could laugh until we weren't living with Dad anymore. He had a great sense of humor when he was a kid. He loved jokes . . . he liked to ride his bike and he set up boards on bricks to do some trick riding. He'd fall off, but he'd get right back on. When he wanted to do something he'd do it . . . I don't know when he started to drink, maybe his sophomore year in high school. I waited until my senior year. I guess I was afraid I'd turn into Dad, but Pops told me to just drink in moderation and I should be okay. He drank a beer once in a while and he was okay . . . Jared . . ."

"Jared was an alcoholic." Brennan knew that Jared had a few DUI's and some arrests for public intoxication. Booth had tried to get him to go to AA meetings, but Jared just laughed at Booth about it. There was nothing funny about the situation and now Jared was dead. "He didn't care."

Booth reached out and placed his hand on Brennan's knee. "He didn't have someone in his corner like I do. Padme wasn't strong enough for both of them. Booth men need strong women in their lives. Pops had Grams and I have you. Dad and Jared . . . they didn't have anyone strong enough to help them, although I don't think Dad could have been helped by anyone. It wasn't just the drinking with him. He was cruel and mean and he loved to inflict pain. Mom . . . Mom never had a chance."

Brennan placed her hand over Booth's hand. "You did all you could, Booth. Hank tried to help Jared too, but Jared didn't want help."

"Thanks for being on my side, Bones." Booth thought about what his life would probably be like without Brennan in it and it wasn't a pretty picture. "That thing last year with the gambling, you were the one that made me want to fix that. Without you on my side . . . thank you."

Brennan smiled and patted Booth's hand. "We help each other."

To their surprise a car pulled up in the driveway and Cam popped out of her car with Michelle following her. "Hey there you two are. We thought we'd take advantage of your invitation and spend the weekend . . . if the invitation is still open."

Booth waved his hand and smiled at his old friend. "Of course it is. We have a guest bedroom upstairs waiting for you. Hodgins and Angela are watching a movie in the living room if you want to join them. Max is here too. He's upstairs playing video games with the kids."

Even though the light was poor on the veranda, Cam could see that Booth looked a lot better than he did when he was in the hospital. "Seeley, you're looking better. Of course you looked barely alive the last time we saw you so anything would be an improvement."

Michelle laughed and once she was on the veranda, she leaned over and hugged Booth. "I'm so glad you're okay. I told Cam we had to come and see how you were. I just wanted to make sure you're okay and Cam agreed with me, so here we are."

Booth patted Michelle's arm and pointed at the door. "You're welcome to stay. We're supposed to have rain tonight, but Bones heard that it's supposed to be sunny tomorrow."

"Oh good." Cam raised her luggage in her hand then dropped it back to her side. "I have a new swim suit and I'd like to get it wet at least once this year."

Once both ladies were in the house, Booth sighed. "I guess our peace and quiet is gone."

Starting to think it was a bad idea to have brought Booth to the beach house, Brennan cleared her throat and squeezed his hand. "Would you like to go home?"

Booth thought about it and finally answered. "Nah, I guess I can be sick anywhere . . . The kids are having a lot of fun and they deserve it after all the stuff they've been put through and you do too. Let's stay I guess . . . It wasn't a bad idea to bring me Bones . . . I just feel like shit and I'm not great company. As long as everyone gets that then I'm good."

Once more Brennan squeezed his hand. "If you want to go home, tell me and we'll leave. You need rest which you are getting here, but I'm not certain you will get any peace."

"I'll tell you if I really want to go home, believe me." Booth turned his attention back to the stars. "We can't get a view like this back home . . . Just so you know, I'm never swimming in the ocean again. Swimming in shit is not my idea of fun. I think the kids shouldn't swin in the ocean either."

Amused, Brennan chuckled. "There are no alerts right now, Booth. The minute I hear of one we'll hve the children stay out of the water."

Booth shuddered at the thought of swimming in sewerage. "I think we should get a pool at home and just avoid this kind of stuff in the future."

"Until one our children urinates in the pool." Brennan laughed knowing that Booth woud react to that statement.

"Bones, for God's sake." Booth shuddered and crossed his arms against his chest. "We'll use lots of chlorine, not enough to kill us, but I'll kill any piss that gets into my pool believe me."

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	4. Chapter 4

(Season 11)

A/N: this is a reminder that this story is rated 'T' for a reason.

I don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

Booth jerked his head to the side when he felt something pressing against his eye. Feeling weight on the right side of the bed where there should be none, Booth opened his eyes and stared into the bright blue eyes of his daughter, her hand retreating from his face. "What's wrong Honey?"

Keeping her voice low so she wouldn't wake her mother, Christine leaned closer to her father's ear. "Uncle Aubrey wants to know where the cinnamon is. He's making French toast and he says it has to have cinnamon."

The house getting way too busy for his taste, Booth pushed on Brennan's back since she was sleeping on her side facing away from him. "Bones, you're wanted in the kitchen."

"What?" Brennan rolled onto her back, rubbed her eyes and then rolled onto her side facing Booth. Spying her daughter kneeling on the bed next to Booth, Brennan smiled. "What do you want Honey? The cereal is on the counter and the milk is on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. I placed some bowls on the counter next to the cereal last night. Remember you can't go outside without adult supervision."

While her mother was talking to her Christine nodded her head, but once Brennan was done, the child shrugged her shoulders. "Uncle Aubrey needs cinnamon for French Toast and for his coffee . . . Grandpa is feeding Hank because he's hungry now."

"When did Aubrey come? He wasn't here last night." Brennan was starting to regret making the invitation an open one. "And we have no more bedrooms left."

Christine giggled and slid off the bed. "Grandpa Max slept in our room, so Uncle Aubrey could have his room. Grandpa slept on the bed next the window and me and Michael Vincent slept on the other bed. Hank slept in his bed of course . . . Grandpa sure makes a lot of noise when he's sleeping."

"Honey, go tell Uncle Aubrey we're out of cinnamon." Booth closed his eyes and tried to go back to sleep. "If he can't find anything else in the kitchen tell him to go to the store." That settled, Booth heard Christine leave the room and close the door behind her. "Go lock the door, Bones."

Snuggling next to her husband, Brennan refused. "No, I'm sleeping."

Not really caring either, Booth slid back into Morpheus's sweet embrace.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

Around nine in the morning, Brennan awoke, got dressed and left the bedroom, closing the door behind her. Entering the kitchen, she noticed the makings for French toast on the counter, but no French toast. The cereal bowls and cereal were unused and there was a distinct quiet in the house. Something unexpected considering there were supposed to be 8 adults and 3 children in the house. Before she could investigate the front door opened and in trudged two children each carrying plastic sacks and Aubrey carrying Hank in the crook of his left arm with two sacks in his right hand. Max followed him in to the house carrying two sacks in each hand.

Aubrey spied Brennan in the kitchen doorway and called out to her. "Hey, you mean you finally got up? Man you people sleep late."

"We went shopping Mommy." Christine walked past her mother, placed her bag on the kitchen table and moved over to where her mother was standing. After hugging her, Christine took one of Aubrey's sacks and placed it on the table while Michael Vincent placed his bag on the table. "We're going to make French toast."

Brennan took Hank from Aubrey and sat down at the table. "It's rather late to start cooking French toast for breakfast isn't it?"

A sly smile on his face, Michael Vincent rubbed his stomach. "We had Egg McMuffins for breakfast and a milkshake too. The French toast is for a snack."

A look of disgust on his face, Aubrey sighed. "That was supposed to be a secret. Since we're going to each lunch in a bit, I guess we can save the French toast for tomorrow." Removing an apple from one of the bags, Aubrey took a bite and left the room.

Amused, Max sat down next to Brennan and leaned on the table. "We all had a nice breakfast so don't cook anything for the kids or me. We were thinking about watching television, but since you're up maybe we can all go outside and play on the beach. It's not too hot yet."

"Everyone go put on your swimming suits and we'll go out to play in a little bit." Brennan stood up and handed Hank to her father. "I'll change him into his suit after I change into my swimming costume." Leaving the kitchen, Brennan noticed Michael Vincent running up stairs. Assuming he was going to wake up his parents, she continued to move through the living room and into her bedroom. "Booth, it's after nine. Do you wish to continue to sleep or would you like to eat breakfast and join me and the children on the beach in a little while?"

The sound of clomping feet on the staircase told them both that someone else was up. Booth rubbed his eyes and flipped the sheet aside. "I guess I'll get up." Sitting on the side of the bed, he flexed his feet getting ready to make his first steps of the day. "Who came in the front door? Do we have more guests?"

"No, Aubrey, Dad and the kids just got back from shopping." Brennan entered the bathroom and checked to see if her swim suit was dry. She had hand washed it the previous evening and hung it up in the bathtub to dry. "They ate breakfast while they were out. It would appear everyone ate McMuffins and milkshakes for breakfast."

"Did they bring me some back?" Booth thought a couple of McMuffins would be pretty good for breakfast.

Brennan called out to Booth from the bathroom. "No, sorry. They didn't mention that they did. We have cereal or I could cook you some eggs if you'd like me to."

Disappointed, Booth stood up and quickly clutched his side. The stitches were starting to pull when he moved around and it wasn't a pleasant feeling. "Hey, when do I get my stitches out?"

Brennan was completely bare when she entered the bedroom holding her swim suit in her hands. Not noticing her husband's eyes widening and growing dark, Brennan slipped her suit on in front of him. "Well you had surgery four weeks ago . . . um, four days I believe. I have your appointment card in my purse, I'll check it later . . . I can remove them for you if you'd like, or we can drive back home for the day to have them removed." Her suit on, Brennan pulled on the material surrounding her legs to make sure the suit wasn't too constricting. Slipping on some sandals, she walked over to where Booth was gawking at her and kissed him. "It's up to you."

His mouth a little dry, Booth licked his lips. "Um . . . okay."

"Okay to which suggestion Booth?" Brennan noticed the look of lust on his face and knew that she should have changed her suit in the bathroom. She didn't want to tempt her husband in any way to ask her for sex since there was no way he could actually participate without risking injury. "I'm sorry, Booth. I should have changed in the bathroom."

Booth shook his head and pulled Brennan closer to his body, ignoring the pain in his side. "You kidding me? I may be hurt, but I'm not dead. Even if we can't do the deed, I can still look at my beautiful wife and her lovely naked ass."

His words were very flattering and Brennan now knew that Booth must be feeling better since he hadn't really touched her very much since he had been released from the hospital. "No sex Booth."

"I know." Booth really really did know. "I swear I'd kick Jared's ass if I could." Booth was still angry with his brother, but not as much as when he'd first woke up in the hospital. "Okay, well, if you want to make me some eggs that would be great. I'm going to change clothes now and I'd rather you weren't in the room, thank you very much."

Amused, Brennan knew why Booth wanted her to leave and she felt sorry for him. The no sex rule was starting to bother her just as much as it was starting to bother him.

Oooooooooooooooooo

Cam and Michelle were in the kitchen preparing scrambled eggs and toast when Brennan entered the room. "Can I help you? Booth and I need to eat breakfast too and perhaps we could cook enough sustenance for all of us plus Hodgins and Angela. The children as well as Dad and Aubrey have already eaten."

Pointing at two cantaloupes on the counter, Cam smiled. "We found some grocery sacks on the table and unloaded them. We weren't sure where they came from."

"Aubrey and Max bought groceries this morning with the help of the children." Brennan started to peel the cantaloupes.

Michelle giggled and shook her head. "That explains the boxes of cookies, snack cakes and the two gallons of ice cream."

Skillfully flipping her spatula through the eggs in the skillet, Cam shook her head. "Not really. I've seen Aubrey eat and he probably bought those just for today's snacks. He'll probably make another run to the store tonight or tomorrow morning."

The cantaloupe now peeled, Brennan sliced it in half, removed the seeds and began to slice it up into slim wedges. "I wouldn't be surprised. If he does go to the store, I plan to give him a list. He can shop for me as well."

Aubrey entered the room and sniffed the air. "I thought I smelled eggs. Any chance I can have some for a sandwich? I'm feeling a little peckish."

Oooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.

A/N: Morpheus is the Greek God of dreams. Everyone should read the classics.


	5. Chapter 5

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I appreciate it.

I don't own Bones.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

Not wanting to be left out of family fun, Booth sat on a chair once more on the beach while everyone around him played in the water or on the beach. Brennan sat with him off and on during the morning, but he didn't expect her to do nothing and miss out on the fun. Once in a while, Christine or Michael Vincent would bring him a sea shell to admire, so it wasn't like he was being ignored.

Dozing for a while, Booth woke with a start when Angela screamed with laughter when Hodgins swooped under the water and came up with her on his shoulders. Envying the fun they were having, Booth sourly shook his head and searched for Brennan. Spotting her talking to a man he'd never seen before, Booth decided he didn't like the way the guy was touching Brennan's arm while he talked to her. He noticed when his wife moved back a step to stop the touching and the man appeared to take the silent rebuke gracefully. Still, the man was poaching in Booth's private reserve and he didn't like it one bit.

Carefully, Booth stood up, felt the stitches pull in his side and decided that he was going to ask Brennan to take them out as soon as she could. There was no way he was driving all the way back to the District just to have someone do something Brennan could do just as well. With a hand on the chair to keep him steady, Booth debated whether or not to walk over to where Brennan was standing when she noticed him standing and strode up the beach to where he was. "Are you going in the house?"

His gaze flicking towards the stranger and then back to Brennan, Booth nodded his head. "Yeah, I'm broiling out here and it's making me feel bad. At least the house has air conditioning. I want to cool off some and maybe get a snack before I come back out."

"Booth, you could sit on the back porch." Brennan glanced around to make sure Christine and Hank were with an adult and realized that they were fine. Max was entertaining all three children building a sand castle and the children seemed to be having a good time helping him. "The overhang would give you plenty of shade and there is a ceiling fan to circulate the air."

"I feel like a . . . I'm so damn sick, Bones." Booth saw the alarm on her face and knew he'd said the wrong thing. "I don't mean sick sick, I mean that I'm still weak and I thought I'd be feeling better by now. It's been over four weeks since was I was shot. I've been shot a bunch of times and I didn't feel like this. Maybe the doctor screwed up when he operated on me."

She knew that Booth was used to bouncing back from injuries, but he didn't seem to realize that this situation was different. "Booth, you lost a lot of blood and the injury you sustained when you were shot was serious. You poured silver nitrate in that wound to cauterize it. Silver Nitrate Booth. The surgeon had to clean that all out of your wound and repair the damage done by it and the bullet. You could have easily died from your injuries. It's going to take a while to recover from that experience."

Hooking her arm around his arm, she walked towards the porch of the beach house with Booth stepping carefully in the sand next to her. "When the stitches are removed that will help, but the blood loss and the seriousness of the wound means you will feel weak for a while. You're strong and in excellent health, so you're recovery is assured Booth. You just need to be patient . . . I know you don't want to hear this, but you're not going back to work for a while. I know you wanted to go back in a couple of weeks, but I think that is unrealistic."

He knew she was right, but it galled him that his body wasn't doing what he wanted it to. "Yeah, maybe." His hand on the rail circling the porch, Booth stepped up onto the back porch and moved over to the door. Opening it, the wave of cool air engulfed him and it was a welcome relief. Once in the kitchen he moved over to the fridge, found a Coke, opened it and drank half of it before stopping. "Damn I was really thirsty."

Brennan removed a bottle of water from the fridge and drank most of it. "Booth sit down at the table. I'll get you a snack, but first I'm going to take water out to everyone. I'm afraid everyone is having too much fun and may be dehydrating like we were."

Settled on one of the chairs next to the kitchen table, Booth sipped the rest of his coke while he waited for Brennan to accomplish her mission. A few minutes of blessed silence and he heard the front door open and close. Curious, he turned to face the kitchen doorway to see who was invading their summer home now.

"Anyone here?" A masculine voice called out and Booth groaned in irritation.

"Yeah, in the kitchen." Booth held his Coke in his hand and waited for trouble to arrive which it did with alacrity.

"Agent Booth, thank you for letting me come to your wonderful beach house." Rodolfo Fuentes admired the kitchen and the spaciousness of the room. "I have a few free days and I thought it might be a good time to see such a wonderful house on the beach. It is much more ostentatious than I am used to, but it's been a while since I've enjoyed the ocean and beach and I didn't wish to miss this opportunity."

Before Booth could reply, Brennan came back into the house and was surprised to see her intern standing next to Booth, a black bag in his hand. "Dr. Fuentes, have you come to partake in our summer activities?"

"Yes, I have, thank you." Rodolfo flashed his charm smile at Brennan enjoying the sight of his mentor in a bathing suit. "I hope this won't be an inconvenience."

"Not at all, although I'm not sure where you'll sleep." Brennan moved into the kitchen and stood next to Booth. "All the bedrooms are taken. Perhaps you can share a room with Agent Aubrey. If that doesn't seem suitable, you may sleep on the couch."

He didn't really care where he slept, so Rodolfo shrugged his shoulders. "Either solution will be fine."

"The kitchen is well stocked, but if we don't have anything you'd like to eat, there is a grocery store down the road." Brennan walked over to the fridge and removed some left over baked chicken from the previous evening and placed the plate in front of Booth. "Here Booth. I saved this for you."

The sight of the chicken reminded Booth that he was hungry. "Thanks Bones." Picking up a chicken leg, he tore the meat off with his teeth and slowly chewed it.

Rodolfo liked the sight of the chicken and it reminded him that he was hungry too. "May I have a piece?"

His hand over the last two chicken legs, Booth shook his head. "Sorry, Bud. I think there's some left over tofu nuggets in the fridge."

Repulsed at the thought of tofu in his mouth, Rodolfo dropped his bag near the table and shook his head. "Thank you, but no thank you." Moving over to the fridge, the intern opened the door and spied some watermelon. Removing it he carried it over to the table and sat down. "This will do."

Still guarding his chicken, Booth ate his snack and glanced at Brennan who was peeling an apple near the counter. He wasn't happy that Dr. Cuba had shown up, but he was sure the doctor would be no trouble. _He better not be._

The back door opening, Aubrey spied Booth eating the last piece of chicken left over from the previous evening and groaned. _Damn it!_ Moving into the kitchen, Aubrey realized that they had more company. "Dr. Fuentes are you here for a few days?"

"Yes I am." Rodolfo sprinkled a little salt on his watermelon and placed the shaker down on the table. "Apparently we're going to be sharing a bedroom."

"Oh joy." Aubrey moved over to the fridge, opened it and spied some leftover macaroni and cheese. Hungry, he grabbed a fork and started eating it cold. "I guess I'm going to go to the store after lunch. If anyone wants anything let me know."

Brennan appreciated the offer. "Thank you. I'll write a list."

Finished with his snack, Booth picked up the plate and carried it over to the sink. After throwing away the empty Coke bottle and the chicken bones, he turned to look at his wife. "I'm going to take a nap."

"Alright." Brennan watched Booth move slowly out of the room and missed the usually vital way her husband moved. Optimistic that Booth would mend and be as strong as he ever was, Brennan finished eating her apple and threw the core and peel into the trash. "Dr. Fuentes, your bedroom is upstairs. It's located on the right side of the hallway just before the main bathroom. You may change your clothes if you wish to join us on the beach. I believe we will start lunch preparation in about two hours."

Finished with his macaroni and cheese, Aubrey smiled. "We're going to grill outside . . . hot dogs, hamburgers, corn and vegetables . . . I bought some ribs too, but I plan to cook those tonight. Hodgins plans to grill steaks tonight too along with some sweet potatoes."

Impressed, Rodolfo smiled. "It sounds wonderful and so much food." The Cuban anthropologist was still impressed with the easy access to food in the United States. He had to watch what he ate to make sure he didn't gain weight. The temptations were great, but he was confident he could control his diet. He did love hot dogs though. They were disgusting, but oh so tasty.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	6. Chapter 6

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I appreciate it.

I don't own Bones.

Oooooooooooooooooo

The weekend over, Cam and Michelle left for home. They'd enjoyed their stay and said they would be back the next weekend. The weather wasn't too hot yet and the lack of rain made the beach house so attractive for mini vacations.

Once they were gone, Rodolfo moved into their vacated bedroom and found that having the corner bedroom gave him more peace and quiet than the bedroom he'd just vacated. Sprawled on the bed, he found the mattress to be more comfortable than the one he had shared with Agent Aubrey. All in all, as far as he was concerned, he was getting the better deal moving into the new bedroom and there was no way Aubrey would ever find that out. He was no one's fool.

Aubrey moved his snack box from the closet and placed it on top of the dresser. Now that he had the room to himself he didn't feel like he had to hide his emergency snacks under his luggage. Rodolfo had been okay as a roommate, but the man had treated Aubrey's snack box as if it was communal property and that was just wrong.

Hodgins and Angela along with Brennan's help took the opportunity to clean and vacuum the house, both upstairs and downstairs while Max went grocery shopping for the week with Brennan's credit card. Aubrey was delegated to cleaning bathrooms and sweeping the back porch, but he figured it was a small price to pay for staying at the beach house for free. Besides vacuuming had turned into a daily chore because of the sand that was constantly tracked into the house and so far Aubrey had not been asked to do that job. Of course, Booth didn't do any chores and sat on the veranda with the children so that the other adults could do their tasks without interruptions.

Rodolfo had been assigned the task of sorting clothes in the laundry room and once that was accomplished he started laundry. He estimated that there were four loads to be done, but the task wasn't onerous and he could read his latest mystery novel while the wash cycled through the machines.

"Uncle Booth, can I see your scar?" Michael Vincent was curious and wanted to see what was under the bandage under Booth's shirt.

Instead of scaring the boy or his children, Booth lifted his shirt past the bandage and showed the scars he had on his upper chest. Fascinated, Michael Vincent put his fingers on the scars and whistled. "Gosh . . . you're not going to let me see under the bandage are you?"

Booth shook his head. "No. It's doesn't look too bad, but the stitches might look scary so you don't need to see them. Maybe once the stitches are out. It depends on what it looks like."

Michael Vincent accepted the answer and turned to Christine. "Want to play catch?" The boy rummaged through a bag of toys that Hodgins had brought out onto the front veranda and left for the children to play with. "We can play Frisbee too or we could use my metal detector and see if we can find any hidden treasure."

The last suggestion was very appealing and Christine pointed to the metal detector. "Let's look for treasure."

Moving off of the veranda, the older children started the process using a search grid while Hank sat on his father's lap and sucked on his thumb. Booth leaned back against his chair to get more comfortable and made sure his son was snug in the crook of his arm. Booth hated to be inactive, but right now he didn't have a lot of choice. Brennan had promised to remove his stitches before they went to bed and he was looking forward to that. The only reason he was keeping the wound covered at that point was to make sure the children didn't see it. Brennan wanted it to get more air, but Booth didn't want to scare the kids. He had promised that once the stitches were gone, he'd keep it uncovered, but safely out of view under his shirt.

Squealing with delight, Christine help up a quarter and waved it around. "Oh boy, we've already found some treasure."

Amused, Booth waved his hand at her. "Good one, Christine. Keep looking maybe you'll find some buried treasure. Pirates used to bury gold and jewels near beaches."

Excited at the prospect, Michael Vincent renewed his search with vigor while Christine followed him with a spoon that Hodgins had popped into the bag of toys.

Booth hadn't been thrilled about staying at the beach house, but he had to admit, it had been nice so far. Noisy that's true and a little crowded, but no one was calling him from Quantico, no one was calling Brennan from the Jeffersonian. It was miraculous that no one was trying to get them to go back to work yet and Booth appreciated that fact. Of course, he was still waiting to see if he was going to be given his old job back, but he was realistic enough to realize he might be turned down. He had talked to Deputy Director Stark on the phone and he seemed to be interested in Booth coming back, but he hadn't committed to Booth's request yet and he knew it would have to be approved by the Director himself. All Booth could do was wait and see what would happen and since he was recuperating he wasn't in a rush to go back to work. One step at a time. That was all he could do.

Oooooooooooooooooo

Back from the store, Max began to unload the grocery sacks from his car with the help of the Christine and Michael Vincent. Booth had stood up and intended to help, but Max waved him off. "Just take care of Hank and we'll see to it."

Settled back into his chair, he witnessed the front door open and Brennan, Hodgins, Aubrey and Angela stream out to the car and grab grocery sacks quickly emptying Max's car of his load of food and cleaning supplies.

Their interest in their treasure hunt was over and Michael Vincent and Christine hurried into the house to see what Max had bought at the store. Booth took the moment to enjoy the silence in the front yard while Hank napped on his lap. After a while, Brennan joined him on the veranda. Taking Hank into her arms, she kissed the babe's cheek while the child continued to sleep. After she was seated next to Booth, Brennan settled the child on her lap, her arms protectively around her baby. "It must be nice to be able to sleep so easily."

"Yeah." Booth envied his children's ability to sleep anywhere no matter how noisy it was. Unusual sounds disturbed Booth and woke him easily. His sleep was often interrupted, but he was used to that and most of the time thought nothing of it. "He's been asleep for about an hour. It's warm out here and I turned the ceiling fan on plus the breeze helps."

Sitting silently on the veranda, the couple enjoyed each other's company as they often did. A few birds moved through the trees and now that the children were in the house, some of them felt brave enough to land on the lawn in search of bugs. Their songs were peaceful and Booth closed his eyes to enjoy them. After a while he fell asleep and Brennan left him to his quiet nap. Entering the house, she found the groceries were put away and Max was in the living room watching television with Rodolfo sitting next to him on the couch. "Where is everyone?"

Max pointed overhead and then towards the children's bedroom. "Everyone is putting on bathing suits so they can go swimming."

Sitting on the chair next to the couch, Brennan made sure Hank was comfortable on her lap while he continued to sleep. "I'll wait for Hank and Booth to wake up before I change and join everyone on the beach. Booth is sleeping on the veranda and I hate to wake him."

Max nodded his head and continued to watch an old movie he had found on TMC. "I can watch Hank if you want to go ahead and go swimming. I can check on Booth once in a while."

Brennan shook her head. "No, I don't think I've ever seen this movie and I'd like to see it." While they watched the movie, Hodgins, Angela, Michael Vincent, Aubrey and Christine left the house via the back door and the house was suddenly quiet except for the dialogue of the movie. Brennan found that she enjoyed the movie and she appreciated that Max and Rodolfo remained quiet while the movie played. Normally watching movies with her family included comments from Booth and Christine. She thought it was very peaceful to just watch it and not have to carry on a conversation at the same time.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

That evening, Booth lay on the bed in their bedroom, his shirt off and his arms along his sides. Brennan studied the uncovered wound carefully and decided that she could remove the stitches with little trouble. After cleaning a small pair of manicure scissors with rubbing alcohol along with a pair of tweezers, Brennan leaned over Booth and carefully snipped the stitches and gently pulled them from the wound.

Some of them were a little tight and slightly embedded which meant that Brennan had to tug on them to remove them, but Booth didn't react as if he was in pain. Booth had been through the process before and laid as still as possible, so Brennan wouldn't accidently jab him with the scissors. "They've really been pulling when I move."

Brennan nodded her head and concentrated on her task. Once that was done, she placed her implements aside and studied the wound. Satisfied, she finally stood up. "So far it looks fine. You have a doctor's appointment in one week with your surgeon that we can't ignore. You still can't get this wet so we'll still have to tape plastic over the wound to keep it dry when you shower. You obviously can't go swimming either, but since you find the ocean water distasteful that shouldn't be a problem."

Glad the stitches were out, Booth sat up and stared at his wound. "It's not a small scar is it?"

"No, it's not, but it isn't too bad either." Brennan knew that Booth had other scars, but they were all small except for the ones on his feet. Kissing his stomach, Brennan wanted him to know he was still attractive to her. "You're still beautiful to me, Booth."

Booth blushed and shook his head. "Handsome, but um, okay, thank you. I appreciate that . . . Still it's kind of large."

Brennan knew that her husband was concerned and she knew she had better be truthful with him. "The wound was a stomach wound and it required a large incision to make sure the silver nitrate was removed as well as the bullet. Plus the surgeon had to remove approximately two feet of your small intestine."

"What?" Booth didn't like the sound of that. "You didn't tell me that."

Brennan shrugged her shoulders. "It's nothing to worry about. You had approximately 6 meters of small intestine before you were injured. Two feet is only 0.6 meters, Booth. It was heavily damaged and it had to be removed."

"Well shit." Booth sighed and lay back down. "I lost half my blood and some of my guts . . . Damn Jared anyway. What a fucking asshole."

Rolling her eyes, Brennan sat down next to Booth on the bed. "How many times do I have to tell you that you didn't lose half your blood?"

His eyes now on Brennan, Booth suddenly laughed. "Until the day I die."

Brennan nodded her head and smiled. "Hopefully that will be many years into the future and we can argue about it often."

Oooooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	7. Chapter 7

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I appreciate it.

I don't own Bones.

Oooooooooooooooo

Rodolfo and Aubrey had the beach mostly to themselves it being a Monday morning and decided to set up a sand castle competition. Christine and Michael Vincent were excited at the thought of big sand castles and offered to help. Christine was given the job of assistant to Aubrey and Michael Vincent was appointed as Rodolfo's helper. Hodgins and Angela found out about the competition when they came back from their walk and decided to build one too. Michael Vincent was torn about who to help until Rodolfo patted his shoulder and told him it was alright to help his parents. Hodgins appreciated Rodolfo's kindness, but talked Michael Vincent into helping Rodolfo since Angela was going to be his partner in the building project.

Brennan chose to set up a blanket on the beach and read while Max brought the bag of toys onto the beach and played with Hank. Max made some ramps out of sand and Hank spent a lot of time running little toy cars over the ramps.

Left to himself, Booth sat on a chair next to Brennan's blanket and watched the sand castles form under the hands of Aubrey, Rodolfo and Hodgins. With the stitches gone he was in a better mood. The pulling from the wound wasn't as bad as the stitches had been and he was glad. He had called a funeral home in the District before coming outside to arrange for Jared's body to be picked up from the Jeffersonian and cremated. When he got back home, he'd have the ashes sent to his house and he'd see about burying the ashes with his grandparents. Booth planned to invite Padme to a little family get together at the gravesite, but he held little hope that she would come. It was going to be his final attempt to stay connected with his sister-in-law, but if she refused then he would accept that she wanted nothing to do with the Booth family. The decision was hers to make.

The sand castles were slowly starting to show signs of turrets, towers and the beginning of moats. The children were collecting sea shells to decorate the castles and were filled with pride when the adults praised them. Booth appreciated that everyone was having fun and wished he could join in, but he still felt weak and he knew that Brennan would have a small herd of cows if he over exerted himself. Not in the mood for an argument with his wife he sat in his chair and tried to relax.

The opening and closing of the back door surprised him and curious, Booth stood up to see who had been in their house. The sight of Jessica, Daisy and little Seeley was surprising, but at this point not unexpected. Daisy had called Brennan to see if she could come for a visit, but Booth had understood she wasn't coming until the weekend. Her rotation at the Jeffersonian was scheduled for next week and she had planned to stay just the weekend. "Daisy, I didn't think you were coming until the weekend."

Daisy waved her hand and with little Seeley on her hip, left the porch with Jessica and walked down the beach towards Booth. Brennan had placed her book down when she heard Booth call out to Daisy and turned to watch her intern approach. "You're welcome of course, but we weren't expecting you until Friday night."

"I was telling Jessica about coming and she planned to come Thursday, so after we talked about it for a while, we decided to come together and spend the week. If you don't have room, we can sleep on the floor in the living room. I brought a portable bed for little Seeley." Daisy stopped next to Booth's chair and gave him a warm smile. "You look so much better, Booth. I'm really glad."

"Thank you." Booth nodded at the child and held out his hands. "If you guys want to change into swims suits, I'll watch little Seeley."

Brennan called out to her Cuban intern, "Dr. Fuentes, Daisy and Ms. Warren need your room, so I need you to move back in with Aubrey."

Brushing the sand from his hands and knees, Rodolfo marched up the beach and smiled. "Of course. I'll show them where my room is, pack my things and move them out of the room. Jessica you will like the room, it is a corner room and very quiet at night."

After Booth sat down, Daisy handed her child over to him and she and Jessica followed Rodolfo back to the house while Booth made sure little Seeley was secure on his lap. "Aubrey, sorry man, but you have a roommate again."

Shrugging his shoulders, Aubrey accepted the fact that he'd have to hide his snack box again. "Not a problem . . . um, maybe I'll go check to make sure Jessica and Daisy don't need help with their luggage."

Once he was gone, Booth grinned and turned to look at his wife who was now sitting on the blanket again. "Well this should be interesting."

"What do mean?" Brennan picked up her book, but didn't open it.

"Didn't you see how Dr. Cuba was looking at Jessica?" Booth chuckled. "I'm sure Aubrey did."

Brennan shrugged her shoulders. "Dr. Fuentes flirts with every female he encounters. He's very good looking and charming."

Scowling, Booth glared at Brennan. "It had better be with single women if he knows what's good for him."

Amused, Brennan got up on her knees and moved closer to Booth. "Flirting is harmless Booth and I can take care of myself."

"Well, that's true." Booth flashed her a smile. "If he tries some shit and you plan to kick his ass, do it when I'm around. I'll cheer you on."

Brennan stood up and kissed Booth. "You're incorrigible." After another kiss, she sat back down on her blanket. "I like that."

"Yeah? Good." Booth shifted the toddler on his lap and pointed at the sand castle Hodgins and Angela were continuing to build. "You see that? Big huh?"

Fascinated, the boy clapped his hands. "Big."

Oooooooooooooooooooo

After a while, Max took little Seeley from Booth and carried the boy to the area of the beach that he had set up with toys for Hank. The two little boys got on well and immediately starting playing with a ball together.

Daisy, Jessica, Rodolfo and Aubrey soon returned to the beach, all of them in swimwear. Aubrey tried to get Jessica to help him with his castle, but she chose to help Daisy create their own sand castle. Brennan noticed that Booth was shifting restlessly in his chair and decided that they should go in the house for a while. Standing, she leaned over her husband and kissed him. "Want to go inside for a while. We can watch television and we can perhaps find a snack."

"Snack?" Booth was staring at his wife's cleavage again and thought that it was unfair that he couldn't enjoy the snack he wanted. "Yeah, okay. Maybe we can fix a snack for everyone and you can bring it out here. It's too early for lunch."

"What a good idea." Brennan and Angela had placed a cooler of bottled water on the beach near her towel and everyone knew that water was available when they wanted it. Hodgins promised to refill it from the cases of water sitting on the back porch near the back door, so there was no need to worry about dehydration.

Once they were in the kitchen, Booth sat at the kitchen table and Brennan pulled a small watermelon and a honeydew melon out of the fridge and placed them on the table with two knives, two plates and a large bowl. While they sliced up the melons and then cut the fruit into smaller pieces, Booth told Brennan about his call to the funeral home and his plans for Jared.

Brennan thought a small family gathering at the cemetery was good idea. "We'll invite Cam and Michelle of course and I'll see if Max would like to come."

After popping a piece of watermelon into his mouth, Booth continued to cut up the melon. "When do you want to go back home? Hodgins told me he and Angela plan to stay for the entire three months. Cam approved it. She said that Angela can work from here and Hodgins agreed to go back to the Lab if he's needed, but they plan to stay here at the beach all summer."

Cautiously, not willing to start an argument at the moment, Brennan continued to look at her melon as she cut it up. "We can stay as long as you wish. Cam has already given me my position back at the Lab, but since you're hurt, she has agreed to my request and I can stay home until you return to work, whether it is at Quantico or the Hoover."

She hadn't really answered his question and he didn't like that she was being so careful talking to him again. He wanted Brennan to be Brennan. "What if I said I want to go back tomorrow?"

That got a response. "Tomorrow? Why? You can't go back to work and you haven't heard back from Stark yet."

"I don't really want to go back tomorrow." Booth placed his knife down and stared at his wife. "I want you to treat me like you normally do. If you have a specific plan for the summer tell me. Don't put it all on me. That's not how we do things and you know it. I'm me Bones. Yeah I almost died, but I didn't, I'm sitting right here in front of you. Nothing has changed. You don't have to treat me like I'm going to break if we fuss at each other. I told you last week that we need to be ourselves and I meant that. That means if you want to fuss and bicker then do it. I'm up for it."

Her bright blue eyes now locked on his deep brown eyes, Brennan nodded her head. "I'd like to stay at least five more weeks. I don't think you'll be back to your normal strength before then. We have to see your surgeon next week and once we do we'll have a better idea when he's going to release you back to work. I think he will insist that you don't go back to work right away because of the seriousness of your injury and the fact that you are still recovering. Is that what you wished to hear?"

Booth smiled. "Yeah, it is. I don't want to stay for five weeks though. Maybe three, but not five."

"I think you would benefit from five weeks here." Brennan saw that Booth was more relaxed and she realized that perhaps she had been treating him a little too cautiously. "All you'll do is watch television at home and you can do that here."

"Yeah, but I won't be surrounded by all of these people" Booth sighed. "Look, I like everyone . . . well almost everyone, but I want to have some solitude before I go back to work. I don't want to have to put up with all the noise and the crowded dinner table and having to fight to see my games on television. Come on. Three more weeks, not five."

Brennan nodded her head. "All sound logical reasons . . . alright, three more weeks and we'll move back home."

"Good." Booth picked up his knife and continued to cut up the melon. "Besides, I want to go home before that freak Oliver shows up."

Since she wasn't a fan of Oliver Wells, Brennan hadn't invited him, but knowing her intern, she knew he was going to show up sooner or later. She hoped it was later, much much later.

Oooooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	8. Chapter 8

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I appreciate it.

I don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooo

Speak of the devil and he'll always appear or at least that's what Hank Booth used to tell his grandson and Booth firmly believed it.

Their week had gone well so far, except for Rodolfo and Aubrey being in an apparent contest to get Jessica's attention most of the time. Angela seemed to think that Jessica favored Aubrey's attention, but Angela told Booth in a private conversation on the back porch that Rodolfo seemed determined to make an impression on the red-haired intern and he didn't care if Aubrey was there or not. Booth knew what it was like to want to be front in center in the eye of the one woman that fascinated you, but for the most part, Booth thought the two men were going about it all wrong. Jessica was there to have fun, not to be the prize in a pissing contest between two horny males and Booth thought they'd better wise up before she told their asses off. Making the red-haired intern angry was not going to win them any points and Booth knew that even if Aubrey and Rodolfo didn't.

That Wednesday was a quiet one with Booth sitting on the back porch reading a novel while everyone else was on the beach playing volleyball or watching the game. Booth had decided it was too hot to be out in the sun and he'd managed to get the children to play on the porch out of the blazing sun. He had the ceiling fan on and the heat was bearable in the deep shade of the porch. Brennan sat on a blanket near the steps in the sun, but taking advantage of the slight breeze coming from the fan. She was watching the volleyball game, cheering anyone who had the ball. She hadn't wanted to take sides.

The sound of the back door opening drew Booth's attention since no one was in the house that he knew of. The door suddenly ajar, Oliver Wells stuck his head through the open space and frowned. "So this is where everyone is. Why do you have your front door unlocked? Anyone could walk in and rob you blind. I'd think an FBI Agent would be more cautious than that."

"Or someone could just walk in uninvited and be a royal pain in the ass." Booth closed his book and placed it on a table next to his chair.

Ignoring Booth's tone of voice, Oliver stepped out on to the porch and closed the door behind him. "Dr. Brennan did leave an open invitation for anyone that wanted to come here, am I wrong?"

Brennan had stood up when Oliver came through the doorway and responded before Booth could. "You aren't wrong, Mr. Wells, it's just that we have a full house right now. There are no bedrooms available for more guests."

Oliver shrugged his shoulders and sighed. "Of course, but since I'm here I'll stay anyway. I suppose I can sleep on the couch until someone leaves and frees up a room."

"Rodolfo is leaving Friday, so if you plan to stay that long, you may have his place when he vacates it. Of course that means you will be sharing a bed with Agent Aubrey." Brennan wasn't happy that Oliver had shown up, but she was a gracious host. "The refrigerator is stocked, but we do expect everyone to buy their own food if they are looking for special victuals. There is a store down the road."

Not really concerned about food, Oliver spied the volleyball game and knew he was a better player. "I can eat anything. If I'm staying I'll go change into my swim trunks and then come out to show those want to be athletes how to actually play volleyball."

After the surly intern disappeared back into the house, Booth turned to glare at Brennan. "Can we go home now?"

Not sure if Booth was serious or not, Brennan shook her head. "Booth, I know you don't like Mr. Wells, but I don't want to change our plans just because he has taken advantage of my invitation."

"Well I do." Booth really disliked the surly polymath and he didn't want to spend any time with the man. Whenever he could, Oliver always made digs and used innuendo to imply that Booth was stupid. "I may not be the genius he is, but I'm not the idiot he thinks I am either."

"Booth, you are not a genius, but you are most assuredly a smart and clever man." Brennan already felt frustrated that Oliver was fomenting trouble. "He treats everyone as if they have less than average intelligence. He barely recognizes that I am a genius. Don't take it personally. I want to stay. The children are thriving being around so many people. They aren't used to being in such an environment and I think it's good for them especially since they've been through so much lately."

"Christine mostly." Booth glanced at the children and saw they were completely enthralled in a game of Candy Land. "Alright, we'll stay, but if that jackass calls me stupid one more time, I'm going to punch his lights out."

Stepping up onto the porch, Brennan moved over to where Booth was sitting and squatted down next to him. "You're recovering from a serious injury. Getting into a physical altercation with anyone could have severe consequences to your recovery."

Booth stared into the concerned face of his wife and knew she was right. "Fine then you can beat the shit out of him for me."

Amused, Brennan laughed. "Alright. I can do that."

Her reply was unexpected and appreciated. "Damn Bones, it's kind of hot thinking about you doing that. Are you sure we can't . . . you know?"

"No we can't." Brennan and her husband were used to a very healthy sex life and they were both a little on edge because of the lack of intimacy. Her voice low, she patted his knee. "I promise when we can, we will stay in bed all day and enjoy each other's company thoroughly."

His eyes bore into Brennan's blue eyes, smiled at her and lowered his voice so the children couldn't hear him. "You are so damn hot, Bones. I hate not being able to make love to you, but you know I will as soon as I can. I love you so much."

Brennan kissed him and smiled. "I love you too, Booth."

Oooooooooooooooooooo

Oliver joined the volleyball game and as Booth expected, the intern proceeded to disrupt the game. Everyone playing didn't mind the intern joining the game, but they didn't appreciate his trash talk and demands that he be allowed more ball time.

After a few scathing insults directed at both Jessica and Daisy by the surly intern, Aubrey suddenly stopped the game and marched over to where Oliver was standing. "Listen Doctor Geek, we're playing a friendly game and if you don't stop being obnoxious I'm going to kick your sorry ass all over this beach."

Shocked, Oliver crossed his arms and glared at the agent. "I was a member of the volleyball team at my college and we won quite a few awards, did you? I'm just trying to give everyone the benefit of my expertise."

A sneer on his face, Aubrey shook his head, "No I didn't, but I've won a few awards in rifle shooting and pistol shooting. Would you like me to prove it to you?"

"No that won't be necessary." Oliver sighed. "If you do not wish to make use of my expertise then that of course is your choice."

"Yes it is." Aubrey moved back to where he had been standing and tossed the ball in the air restarting the game.

Booth and Brennan had witnessed the altercation from the porch and was surprised that Oliver and backed down so quickly. Normally the intern dug in his heels when he thought he was right.

"Way to go Aubrey." Booth hadn't said it loud enough for anyone to hear except Brennan, but she had been his intended audience anyway. "I guess we can stay Bones. It looks like it might be interesting around here for the next few days after all."

Amused, Brennan chuckled. "I'm going inside to fix some iced tea, would you like a glass?" Brennan felt that Oliver might have a sharp wit and a sharp tongue to match, but he may have finally insulted the wrong person. After Booth nodded his head, she turned to clap her hands to get the attention of the children. "Children, would you like some iced tea?"

All of the children liked the sound of that and stood up, even Hank who had understood the word tea. It was his favorite beverage. Calling out to Brennan that they were thirsty and tea sounded good, Brennan opened the back door and led all of the children inside to the kitchen. Booth stood up, glanced at the now subdued Oliver and entered the house behind the children closing the door behind him. "Hey kids, want some ice cream?" Squealing yeses was all the answer Booth needed to know that he was going to have company eating ice cream. He just hoped he had enough. If not, Aubrey could always go to the store for him.

Ooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	9. Chapter 9

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I really appreciate it.

I don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

The rest of the week was pleasant even if they had a small fly in their ointment named Oliver. For the most part, everyone enjoyed the sunny days and if rain appeared, it didn't last long enough to dampen anyone's spirits. The week turned to the weekend and the crowds at the beach grew, but the section of beach behind the vacation house was not invaded by too many beach goers. The few that came along usually were passing through on the way to somewhere else although a few young people stopped and asked if they could play volleyball or Frisbee with the guests at the beach house. The interns and Aubrey were always quick to agree and sometimes the games got raucous and lively, but it was all in good fun. Booth enjoyed watching the games even if he couldn't play and when he grew bored, he'd find a book to read, take a nap or watch television. Brennan checked on him throughout the day to make sure he was alright and Booth found he didn't mind. Once in a while, he'd talk her into taking a nap with him and he enjoyed her company in bed, even if they couldn't do anything romantic.

Aubrey and Rodolfo were busy trying to impress Jessica Warren most of the waking hours of the day and Brennan found that amusing along with her husband. Oliver was constantly correcting or insulting the other guests, but most of those who bore the brunt of the insults either insulted him back or ignored him. Hodgins and Angela interacted with everyone and made a least one trip a day with the children to the store to buy treats and small toys to play with and to pick up groceries to feed all the hungry mouths in the house. They had felt guilty about Aubrey and Max buying groceries since they were guests, so they had taken that burden upon themselves. Aubrey still went to the store every day, but that was to buy the snacks and treats that Hodgins didn't buy. A man has to eat and Aubrey believed in eating well.

After making a call, Daisy had traded her work schedule with Wendell and extended her stay at the summer house for a few more days. Little Seeley was enjoying himself and Daisy didn't want to ruin his fun. She and Jessica split their time between hanging out on the beach with each other, playing sports like volleyball with the other guests and playing with the children. Jessica was a bit annoyed at the constant attention showered on her by Aubrey and Rodolfo and chose to stay around Daisy most of the time to keep the two men in check. She really liked Aubrey, but at the moment he was acting like a jealous boyfriend. Since they weren't dating and they were just friends Jessica felt that Aubrey was acting a little crazy and wondered why.

As the weekend ended, Rodolfo bid the house full of guests good bye and went home. "I've had a wonderful time here, Dr. Brennan. Thank you for inviting me."

Brennan had enjoyed Rodolfo's company and the fact that he had helped with minor chores without asking. As far as Hodgins was concerned, Rodolfo had been the perfect guest. "Come back anytime man. Our lease isn't up until the end of August."

"Thank you, I may come back at least once more." Rodolfo had driven away relaxed and happy that he had had an opportunity to vacation in such a pleasant area with great people.

Once Rodolfo was gone, Oliver moved into Aubrey's bedroom much to Aubrey's annoyance. Oliver snored like a buzz saw and Aubrey wondered if anyone could prove murder if he smothered the squint in his sleep. Thinking it over, he knew that Brennan would figure it out in five minutes so he decided to sleep on the couch in the living room instead. There was no way he was going to jail just to get rid of Oliver Wells. Let someone else pay the ultimate price for getting rid of the human sand paper.

The house was filled to capacity with guests and the place was noisy most of the time, but the children loved it and Brennan liked it as well. She wasn't used to being around so many people in a social setting for such a long period of time, but she found it fascinating. The social dynamics were interesting and she was keeping notes just in case she decided to write a paper about her observations. The children played well together with just the occasional temper tantrum which Brennan and everyone else knew was normal. Usually a cuddle and some quiet time with one of the parents was enough to dry up the tears.

Max spent most of the time playing with Hank and Little Seeley or watching television while they were napping. Brennan had been concerned that Max might think he was just being used as a babysitter, but the older man had laughed at the suggestion and assured his daughter. "Hey I love being here and being with my grandson and granddaughter and little Seeley. I even like Michael Vincent, he's a real character. We're having fun and we're bonding. I'm doing exactly what I want to be doing. You aren't using me, I'm using you. I'm vacationing with my family and I'm having a blast, okay?"

Booth was feeling better each day and seemed to be getting his strength back. After a day trip back to the District to see his surgeon, the couple came back to the beach house just a little subdued. Booth was recovering well, but the surgeon had cautioned Booth not to push himself too far. His injury had been life threatening and it would still be at least four more weeks before he could return to work. He was also advised not to have sex for at least two more weeks. That particular news had frustrated the couple, but they assured the doctor they would comply. Reluctantly on Booth's part, but he knew that Brennan would make him toe the line.

Oooooooooooooooooo

The week flew by and on Thursday, Daisy and Little Seeley left for home. They had enjoyed themselves immensely and Daisy had vowed that she might be back in a couple of weeks. She wanted to take advantage of the beach house and the opportunity to spend time with people that she considered family and not just co-workers and friends.

Jessica decided to stay through the weekend since her rotation wasn't coming up at the Lab for another week. She needed to visit her father and her brothers for some family bonding, so she planned to do that the next week. She had enjoyed her stay at the beach house and hoped to be back at least one more time before school started again. The intern also realized that since Rodolfo had left, Aubrey had returned to his friendly funny self which Jessica greatly appreciated.

On Saturday, Wendell showed up with Andie and the bedroom situation changed once more. Oliver was kicked out of the bedroom to make room for the couple. Much to Oliver's annoyance he had the choice of sleeping on a chair or on the floor with blankets in the living room. Since neither option was palatable to him, he left and went home, much to the glee of everyone else.

Booth sat on the front porch and waved at Oliver as the squint drove away. "Good-bye asshole. Don't come back." He knew the intern couldn't hear him, but he felt like the words needed to be said anyway. Aubrey who had been on the front porch with Booth talking about a case that he had worked on while Booth had been 'retired' had laughed and waved at Oliver too. "That guy is a royal pain in the ass. I thought Jessica was going to tear him a new asshole the other night when that bastard told her that her lack of solemnity was going to hurt her career. He actually told her that no one likes a smart ass. Jessica got this weird look on her face and I was thinking about pummeling the guy, but she just looks at him and laughs. 'You should keep that in mind Oliver.' she said. 'You may be a genius, but no one wants to be reminded of that fact 24/7. I may be a smart ass, but you're just an ass and no one likes you when you act better than everyone around you.' Boy he looked at her like he was shocked and then he just shook his head and walked away. That guy is so damn weird."

"Yeah, he is." Booth didn't really want to talk about Oliver Wells. "When do you have to go back home?"

Aubrey took a sip of his Coke and placed the can down on his thigh. "Thursday. I have some stuff to do at home before I go back to work the Monday after. It's been a lot of fun here. I was an only child, so being around this many people on vacation is new and I kinda like it. I never did Spring Break in college because I had to work. I really appreciate you inviting me here."

Booth wanted to be honest, so he corrected the agent. "Well, you should thank Bones. I didn't know anything about this until she sprang me from the hospital and drove me here. She and Hodgins wanted to rent this place to get away from the District for the summer and they thought this was the perfect way to do it . . . I didn't really want to be here, but this place has kind of grown on me. It's been an unusual vacation, but it's been fun."

"Yeah, it has been." Aubrey finished his coke and stood up. "I think I'm going to go for a swim."

Booth watched Aubrey go back into the house then settled back onto his chair. It was peaceful on the veranda and even the birds were quiet. Slowly rocking his chair, the overhead fan provided him with a welcoming breeze as he watched a squirrel run down a nearby tree and wander out onto the front lawn. After a while, the heat of midday and the quiet got to Booth and he fell asleep.

Oooooooooooooooooooooo

The afternoon was hot and Booth finally woke up to find his shirt and shorts damp from sweat. After he turned the overhead fan off, he walked into the house and into his bedroom where he changed his shirt, underwear and shorts to drier clothes. Before he buttoned up his shirt, he ran a finger over the scar on his belly and shook his head. "Jared . . . why couldn't you grow up and take responsibility for your life? Why did you have to be so . . . so like Dad?" The loss of his brother was starting to bother him. As annoying as Jared had been, he had been his little brother and now the feckless man was dead and he'd never see him again.

Sitting on his bed, Booth let himself cry for his brother. Up until that moment he had been too angry with Jared to really mourn for him. Sure he had shed a couple of tears for his brother, but they had been more angry tears than sad. Now he was just sad and he knew his anger was finally fading away.

Brennan found her husband in the bedroom crying. She had debated leaving him alone, but decided that he needed her instead. Locking the door behind her, she sat down next to him on the bed and placed her arm around his waist. She didn't know why he was crying, but she knew he needed her and she needed to be there for him.

After a while, Booth stopped crying, picked up the damp shirt he had replaced earlier and wiped his face. "The only family I have left is you and the kids, Bones." Booth didn't think of his mother. After she had married, Booth had visited his mother once and that seemed to be the end of their relationship. His mother had a new life and a new family and she didn't really have room for her former family. Booth accepted that and rarely thought of her. "I guess I'm just feeling sorry for myself. I mean I didn't even like Jared, so I don't know why I'm crying . . . Thanks for being here for me and thanks for bringing me here. It's really helped to be around a lot of our friends."

"You're welcome." Brennan kissed the side of his face. "I think you cried because you feel like an orphan. I know how that feels and it is unpleasant, but you have me and the children and Max and our friends. You aren't alone, Booth . . . Aubrey is going to go to the store to buy some ice cream. He wants to know what flavor you want."

Puzzled, Booth shook his head. "I don't need any ice cream. I have a half gallon in the freezer."

With a roll of her eyes, Brennan shook her head. "Not anymore."

A deep sigh escaped him and Booth stood up. "Okay . . . maybe I'll go with him to the store. I haven't been anywhere since we got here."

A feeling of anxiousness flitted through her, but she knew it was just because she worried about her husband when he wasn't in her sight. When he wasn't by her side, she had a vague sense of dread that she would never see him again. She knew it was silly, but after almost losing him she was having a hard time recovering from the fright she had gone through. She didn't speak of her fears to Booth and she never would. They both had to live their lives and soon, she hoped, Stark would approve Booth's return to the Hoover and his old job. She would have to be away from him for hours at a time and she would do that with faith that she would see her husband at the end of the day. Booth had to be allowed to work at the job he loved and she would never get in the way, just like she knew Booth would never interfere with her career. They were the center and they would always hold. "Bring me back some coconut ice cream if they have any."

Slightly alarmed, Booth stared at his wife wide-eyed. "Wait, coconut ice cream? You only ask me to buy that when you're . . . um . . . you aren't pregnant are you?"

"Of course not, Booth." Brennan laughed and kissed his cheek. "I just want some coconut ice cream. All Hodgins and Aubrey ever buy is chocolate ice cream or ice cream with chocolate in it. I'd like something that doesn't contain chocolate."

Not sure if he was relieved or not, Booth kissed her. "Got it, if they don't have coconut I'll find something non-chocolaty although I don't understand how anyone can get tired of chocolate."

As he left the bedroom, Brennan followed Booth out to the living room and then followed him and Aubrey out of the front door. As they drove away, Brennan stared at the car until it disappeared from view. Bracing her shoulders back, she walked back into the house, sat down on the couch and waited for Booth to return to her. The faint sounds of her children laughing on the back porch made her feel confident that her little family was safe and that Booth would be safe with Aubrey. She trusted Aubrey to take care of her man.

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	10. Chapter 10

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I appreciate it.

I really don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooo

Friday came and suddenly the beach house was quiet. Jessica had left on the previous Monday and Aubrey, Wendell and Andie had left to return home the evening before and that meant the house was back to a more manageable crowd size. Hodgins, Angela and Brennan took the opportunity to clean the house and do laundry while Booth and Max watched over the children on the beach.

Booth sat on a chair near the shoreline and helped supervise Christine and Michael Vincent build a sand castle while Max watched over Hank. The children squabbled for a while over whether or not to build a moat around the castle and Booth let them. He didn't see any reason why the young friends couldn't argue since he loved to bicker with his wife. It added spice to a friendship as far as he was concerned.

The sky was dark on the horizon and Booth wondered if they were going to get rain, but since it was far out to sea at the moment he wasn't going to worry about it. Feeling a little restless, Booth decided that getting his feet wet wouldn't hurt anything. He thought of the sewerage that might be lurking in the water, but he knew he could scrub his feet extra hard later to get them clean. It wasn't as if he was going to go swimming.

Max kept an eye on Booth once he'd realized that his son-in-law had left his chair. Booth was recovering nicely and Max was grateful for that, but he knew that Booth still had a few weeks to go before he'd be considered recovered. That Booth had almost died had put a scare into Max. He was counting on his son-in-law to be around to take care of Brennan when he died and he wished Booth would take less risks in his job and personal life. He had met Jared a couple of times before the younger brother had died and he had never been impressed with the younger man. As far as Max was concerned, Jared was irresponsible and used his brother shamelessly when things were going wrong for him. When Max had heard that Jared was dead he had been uncharitable in his thoughts, but he didn't care. Booth was better off with Jared out of his life. Booth's family sucked and Max felt that he and his family were Booth's true family. They loved him and Max was sure that Booth knew that.

The water at the edge of the beach was warm. Booth had hoped it would be cooler, but it was summer in Virginia so he wasn't sure what he had been thinking. Perhaps he wasn't. Bored, he walked over to where the sand castle was being built and praised the children for the good job they were doing. They invited him to help, but since he was still restricted about what he could do, Booth had to decline.

Once he was back in the chair, Booth realized that he missed the noisy crowd that had been around him for the last few weeks. The interns were all a quirky lot, but highly entertaining and now he wished someone would show up to help keep him company.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooo

That evening, Cam and Michele returned to the beach house and Booth gave them each a hug which surprised everyone. Booth wasn't much of a hugger unless it was with Brennan or the kids, so Cam and Michele found it odd to be hugged by their friend. "I'm glad you could come back. You can pick which bedroom you want upstairs. There are two empty ones right now."

His color was darker and a more normal shade of olive and the gray smudges under his eyes were gone which pleased Cam. "You're looking so much better Booth."

"I feel better." Booth had been on the veranda watching the birds and squirrels roaming about the front lawn when Cam and Michele had driven up and now he opened the front door to invite them in. "My stitches are out. They were pulling like hell, but it's not so bad now."

"May I look at it, Booth? The scar?" Cam wanted to assure herself that he was indeed healing properly.

Closing the door behind them, Booth shrugged his shoulders, noticed that only Max was in the living room and lifted his shirt.

Cam leaned over and inspected the wound carefully. Please with what she saw she motioned for him to lower his shirt. "It looks fine. The surgeon did a great job. The scar is long, but it should fade with time."

That sounded fine with Booth. Brennan had assured him that it didn't look too bad, but still he worried that he was getting too many scars. "That's what Bones told me, but it's nice to get a second opinion."

Hodgins came downstairs and smiled at Cam and her daughter. "Hey, I thought I recognized your car in the driveway. Welcome back you two."

Michele hugged Hodgins and carried her bag upstairs. "I'm going to put my swim suit on. The sun is still up."

Cam checked her watch and shook her head. "For another hour. Just come back in when the sun goes down. I don't want you out there by yourself after dark."

"Oh Cam." Michele rolled her eyes, but kept climbing the stairs. "I'm an adult."

"Yes, I know." Cam shook her head and followed her daughter upstairs to unpack.

Max chuckled and stood up. "I better go upstairs and check on the kids. The last time I was up there Christine was beating Michael Vincent at some video game and he wasn't taking it well."

After he sat down on the couch, Booth picked up the remote for the TV and started to channel surf. Settling on a movie he hadn't seen for a while, he placed the remote down and watched the opening credits scroll across the screen. Since it was a movie he liked, Hodgins sat down on the chair next to the couch and watched too. It had been so noisy lately and Hodgins found the peace and quiet to be very enjoyable.

Carrying bowls of ice cream in their hands, Brennan and Angela entered the room and each handed their husbands a bowl before sitting down on the couch. Brennan spooned some coconut ice cream in her mouth and let it melt as she watched the movie start. "What is this?"

"Groundhog Day." Booth scooped up some ice cream and enjoyed the flavors. Moose Track was a great ice cream and he had bought a half gallon the last time he had gone to the store with Aubrey.

"We're watching a movie about a minor holiday or about a groundhog?" Brennan thought both ideas sounded dull.

Hodgins grinned at Brennan's expression and decided to answer her question. "Both. It's a movie about a groundhog and the holiday. You'll love it. It's funny."

Filled with doubt, Brennan decided that it didn't really matter what the movie was about. She was with her husband and her friends, the children were playing upstairs and the house was relatively quiet. She liked the peacefulness at the moment and if that meant she was going to watch a dull movie then so be it.

Shortly afterward, Cam and Michele came downstairs. Michele went out to the beach to take a quick dip and Cam sat down on the chair on the other side of the couch and joined her friends watching the movie.

The house was relatively quiet and the friends enjoyed the moment. Who knew who would appear next at the door?

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

The movie almost done, a knock on the front door shattered the peace in the living room and reluctantly Hodgins got up and opened the door to find Colin Fisher standing on the veranda. "Fisher, come on in."

Booth rested his head on Brennan's shoulder and quietly muttered. "Oh great, Doctor Gloom is here."

Fisher entered the living room carrying a bag and gave everyone a tentative smile. "It's okay I came isn't it? I talked to Daisy on the phone the other day and she told me you had an open invitation for visitors and I know I don't work at the Jeffersonian anymore, but . . . ." He stopped talking and waited to see who would answer and what the answer would be.

"Of course, Dr. Fisher." Brennan stood up and motioned for him to come further into the room. "We have a guest bedroom upstairs." Not sure which bedroom was free, Brennan looked at Cam.

"Oh, use the bedroom on the right side of the hallway. It's the room on the other side of the bathroom. The game room is across from your room." Cam smiled at her former employee and silently wished she had chosen another week to come back.

"Thank you, of course it is." Fisher nodded his head at everyone and as he passed the couch glanced down at Booth. "I'm glad you didn't die Agent Booth."

A creepy feeling running down his back, Booth shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah me too." Once the former intern was gone Booth sighed. "I need a beer."

"No beer, Booth." Brennan picked up the empty ice cream bowls from the coffee table and carried them into the kitchen. Shortly she was back and handed Booth a bottle of Coke. "I'm going to go upstairs and check on the children. I'm surprised that Hank isn't fussing by now. It's close to his bedtime."

Taking the bottle from his wife, Booth unscrewed the cap and took a drink. "I'd still rather have a beer."

"And you still can't have one." Brennan climbed the stairs and was soon out of sight.

"Spoilsport." Booth took another sip and smiled at Cam and Angela. "Soon though. Very soon."

Ooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	11. Chapter 11

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I really appreciate it.

I don't own Bones.

Oooooooooooooooooo

The next morning, Booth got up early and once he was dressed and in the kitchen, he decided to make breakfast for everyone. He was tired of being waited on and he felt it was time to put in his fair share of the work at the beach house. He knew he was still limited as to how much weight he could pick up, but making pancakes should be alright. Once he assembled the batter to make his pancakes, he waited to heat up the griddle. Rummaging around in the fridge, he found a bowl of strawberries and sat down at the kitchen table to slice them up into a bowl. Once that was accomplished, he found the bacon and filled two baking trays with the raw bacon slices and placed them in the oven to bake.

A glance at the clock and he saw it was now 8:15 and decided to start cooking pancakes. After he turned on the griddle, he poured the first batch of batter onto the hot surface then removed plates from the cabinet, a few at a time and stacked them on the kitchen counter near the fridge. He also retrieved some glasses and placed them near the plates.

Awakening, Brennan rolled over to hug her husband and was surprised to find that side of the bed was empty. After checking the bathroom and finding it empty, she hurried and got dressed. Worried about where Booth might have gone, once she left her bedroom she smelled the scent of cooking bacon in the air and knew what Booth was up to.

Not surprised, Brennan entered the kitchen and found Booth sitting on a chair near the counter that held the griddle and bowl of batter. "You decided to cook?" She didn't want to fuss at him. Her husband was recovering nicely and she had known that sooner or later he was going to start pushing back at his forced inactivity. He was normally a very active man and the inactivity was bothering him and she knew it.

Booth turned on his chair and help up his spatula. "Sure, I'm up and I'm hungry. I've cut up some strawberries and I have bacon in the oven. I'm making pancakes . . . I was careful, I haven't lifted anything heavy. I even pushed the chair over here instead of picking it up."

Grateful that her husband was minding his restrictions, Brennan walked across the kitchen, leaned over and kissed him. "You look a little tired, want me to take over."

He returned her kiss and shook his head. "Nah, I'm fine. I may take a nap after breakfast though. I can't believe cooking breakfast has made me tired like this."

"You are still recovering, but really Booth, you are doing quite well." Brennan was pleased with his recovery and felt that he was getting stronger every day.

"Yeah, I am." Booth felt better than he had in weeks and he knew it was just a matter of time before he could do the things he wanted to do. "Plus no one around here seems to know how to make decent pancakes the way they should be made." Booth stood up, removed the cooked pancakes from the griddle and poured more batter on the hot surface.

While Booth took care of his pancakes, Brennan checked the bacon in the oven and noticed it was starting to crisp up. "I'll make Hank some oatmeal. His fecal output isn't what it should be. I fear he might be slightly constipated."

Not exactly a conversation Booth wanted to have before breakfast, he let her continue the conversation without his input. Brennan was a great mother and kept a check on her children's personal habits. He tried to do that too, but he knew she was better at it than he was. "I saw some raisins in the cabinet. You can add that to his oatmeal."

"What a good idea, Booth." Brennan found the oatmeal and raisins and put the oatmeal on to cook. Once that was done, she left the kitchen to see if her children were awake yet.

Entering the kitchen, Fisher noticed Booth cooking pancakes, walked over to the fridge to retrieve a bottle of water. "No coffee?"

Booth shook his head. "Not yet, go ahead and make a pot."

After Booth pointed out where the bag of coffee grounds was, Fisher started the coffee maker and sat down at the kitchen table with his bottle of water. "I read about your brother. I'm sorry for your loss."

Facing the counter, Booth nodded his head. "Thanks."

Not sure if he should say anything else, Fisher sipped some water and then cleared his throat. "I know he died under unusual circumstances, but he died trying to do a good thing. You guys risked a lot to get that list of undercover Federal Agents back and well, thank you. I want to thank you for your service and the service of your brother."

Surprised, Booth turned to look at the former intern. The man was staring at him with a look of sincerity on his face and Booth appreciated his kind words. "Thanks. Jared . . . Jared did the best he could. He got involved in something that he shouldn't have, but when he found out what was really going on he did the right thing."

"He was a hero." Fisher nodded his head. "I lost my father when I was young, so I know what it's like to lose a loved one . . . If you need someone to talk to I'd be happy to listen."

Again, Booth was surprised that Fisher was being so nice to him and he wasn't sure how he should react. He didn't want to talk about Jared, but the offer was appreciated. "Thanks, I'm good." Turning back to his griddle, Booth marveled how people surprised him sometimes. Dr. Gloom wasn't as creepy as he thought he was.

The smell of bacon had awakened her and Michelle entered the kitchen hungry and ready for breakfast. "Booth, it smells so good in here."

Amused and pleased with the compliment, Booth smiled as he checked on his pancakes. "Check on the bacon in the oven for me Michelle, I'd appreciate it. It's probably ready. I have some pancakes already made and there's some strawberries to put on them if you want them."

Once the bacon was out of the oven, Michelle took a few pieces, placed two pancakes on the plate she had retrieved from the counter and sat down. Fisher followed her example and filled a plate for himself. The coffee made, he filled a cup for Booth and handed it to him. That accomplished he carried his plate over to the table and placed it down. He then returned to the coffee maker, filled up two cups and brought them back to the table, placing one of the steaming cups down next to Michelle's plate. "Here you go."

Grateful for the coffee, once Fisher was sitting down, Michelle started a conversation with the doctor and enjoyed her breakfast. Once they were both done, they placed their dirty dishes in the dishwasher and bid Booth goodbye as they left the house to go for a walk along the beach.

Brennan entered the kitchen with her children, Michael Vincent and her father behind her. Once everyone was settled at the table and Hank was in his highchair, Brennan made breakfast plates for everyone and a bowl of oatmeal for her son. Booth was nibbling on some bacon and wondering if he had enough pancakes made when Hodgins and Angela entered the room with Cam. Once he was sure everyone had pancakes, Booth filled a plate with bacon and pancakes and ate his breakfast where he was sitting since the table was fully occupied.

Curious, Cam sipped her first cup of coffee of the day and then turned to face Booth. "Have you seen Michelle this morning?"

Booth paused his eating, swallowed his bite of pancake and used his fork to point at the back door. "She and Fisher ate breakfast and then went for a walk."

"Fisher?" Cam wasn't sure she liked the sound of that. "Fisher and Michelle together?"

He knew that Cam wasn't happy with the situation, but he decided that the situation was funny. "Yeah, they talked like old friends then went for a walk. They seemed to get along pretty good. Really good."

Her eyes glinting at Booth, Cam frowned. "Wait until Christine starts dating boys."

Appalled at the thought, Christine quickly spoke up. "Ew, Aunt Cam. That's gross." Christine knew what dating was since her parents dated every Friday night when her Dad wasn't sick and the kissing and hugging was okay, but no way she was doing that with a boy.

A smirk on his face, Booth wiggled his eyebrows. "Ha you see, problem solved."

Brennan shook her head and continued to eat. Booth had declared to her the previous year that Christine couldn't date until she was out of high school, but she knew that wasn't going to happen.

Hodgins winked at Angela and smiled. "We've agreed that Michael Vincent can date when he's sixteen, but we'll worry about that when the time comes . . . so Fisher and Michelle, that's interesting."

"No it's not." Cam hoped that all of the friendly teasing was just that. She didn't want Michelle interested in Colin Fisher. He was ten years older than her daughter and the man was depressing. "Michelle is just being friendly. Don't make more of it than it is."

Everyone at the table wisely remained silent. Chances were Michelle and Fisher were just becoming friends and nothing more, but if it did develop into more than that then they'd handle that when it happened.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

Breakfast done, Cam and Brennan cleaned the dishes and cleaned up the kitchen while Booth went to take a nap and everyone else went outside to enjoy the beach. Hodgins filled up the cooler with bottles of water and ice and Angela helped him carry it out to the beach.

Michelle and Fisher eventually returned from their walk, changed into swim suits and joined everyone for some fun in the water.

Once the kitchen was cleaned, Cam change clothes to join her daughter in the water and Brennan checked on her husband. She found him sleeping and he looked so peaceful, she joined him on the bed. Resting next to him, she placed her hand on the outside of his leg and closed her eyes. She was grateful that Booth was doing so well and that he had enough vigor to cook breakfast told her that his energy was coming back. She had been so frightened during his misadventure and she had worried that she would never see him again. That she had found him and he had made it to the hospital in time to save his life was something she still thought about. It had all been so close. He had almost died and the thought still filled her with dread. She was thankful that she had friends that she could rely upon in her time of need and the open invitation to the beach house was her way of saying thank you to them and all they had done for Booth and her. She would always be grateful to them.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	12. Chapter 12

(Season 11)

Thank you for reviewing my story. I appreciate it.

I don't own Bones, not even a little bit.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

The phone rang and Hodgins heard it ringing from the living room. Hurrying into Booth and Brennan's bedroom, he picked up the phone from the dresser and answered it. "This is Dr. Hodgins, may I help you."

 _Yes, may I speak to Seeley Booth?_

"Yes of course, let me carry the phone outside. He's on the back porch." Hodgins hurried out of the bedroom, across the living room, through the kitchen and out the back door. Spying Booth sitting next to the door, he handed his friend his phone. "Hey man, your phone was ringing and I answered it."

Taking the phone, Booth nodded his head at Hodgins. "Yeah, this is Booth."

 _Agent Booth, I thought you might be interested in the outcome of a meeting I had with the Director. We'd like to offer you your old position as head of Major Crimes if you're still interested._

"Of course, Sir. Thank you." Booth had started to think he wasn't going to get his old job back since he hadn't heard anything from Stark. "I'm still recovering from my injury, but I should be able to come back to work in three weeks."

 _That's fine. I've already talked to Agent Aubrey and explained the situation to him. We will do right by him and find him a new position here at the Hoover. Welcome back._

"Thank you, Sir." Booth hadn't really thought about how his going back to the Hoover would affect Aubrey, but he appreciated that Stark would make sure his friend wouldn't suffer for losing the position as head of Major Crimes. Aubrey was still technically temporary head, so the title had never been permanent.

 _You're welcome. The Director felt it would be a terrible thing to waste your experience by keeping you at Quantico. I'd like to see you when you come back. We have a few things to talk about, but they can wait until then._

"Thank you, Sir." The call ended, Booth placed the phone on the table next to him and realized that Hodgins was still standing next to him. "I've got my job back in Major Crimes."

His fist thrust into the air, Hodgins responded with glee. "Yes! Now we can have the team back together. This is great."

Booth appreciated his enthusiasm, but cautioned him. "Look let me tell Bones. I want to tell her."

"Sure, not a problem." Happy that their team would be whole once more, Hodgins reached out and shook Booth's hand. "Welcome back."

Grateful that Hodgins didn't hug him, Booth smiled and shook the entomologist's hand. "Thanks."

Brennan had noticed the interaction between her husband and her friend and was curious as to what was going on. Leaving Christine to play at the water's edge with Angela, she hurried up the beach towards the porch as Hodgins stepped down off of the porch. Unable to contain his enthusiasm, Hodgins thrust his right thumb in the air, but was careful not to say anything to Brennan.

Her curiosity piqued, Brennan stepped up onto the porch and stood facing her husband. "What is going on? You seem happy and Hodgins appears to be excited."

His news so good, Booth stood up and took her hands in his hands. "I'm back at Major Crimes. I start in three weeks."

Careful not to press against his stomach, Brennan placed her arms around him and hugged him gently. "This is great news Booth. I'm so glad for you."

"I know, right?" Booth hugged Brennan and then kissed her. "Partners again, huh?"

"Partners always, Booth." Brennan returned his kiss and smiled. "I wish you could drink wine so we could celebrate."

Booth glanced at Hodgins and Angela who were talking on the beach and then turned his attention back to Brennan. "I know of a better way to celebrate. Let's go make love. I know we promised the doctor we'd wait, but I'm tired of waiting and I'm sure it would be okay. It's only a few days before the two weeks is up anyway."

Not sure his suggestion was wise, Brennan bit her lower lip and thought about it for a few seconds. "If you let me take care of everything, you can't be too phsycical . . . I mean it Booth. I'm pretty sure we can do what you want if you don't over exert yourself."

"Look Bones, I'm better. I can handle more than you think." Booth felt a little frustrated that his wife was still treating him like an invalid. "I've been taking walks for the last couple of days in the morning and I cooked dinner last night. Well I had help, but I did it and I didn't need a nap afterward . . . come on, I'm okay."

"We will make love on my terms or not at all." Brennan knew that Booth still tired easily and she didn't want to delay his recovery because he felt he was ready for sex. "I don't want you to hurt yourself."

Since she was considering his suggestion, Booth knew that he'd have to go along with her plan or he wouldn't get what he wanted. "Alright, sure. Let's go." Taking her hand, Booth opened the back door and pulled Brennan into the kitchen with him. "It's been so damn long . . . it's been frustrating as hell."

Once they were in their bedroom, Brennan locked the bedroom door, smiled and proceeded to remove her swim suit. "It's been frustrating for both of us . . . Remove your clothes, Booth. We have the house to ourselves at the moment, but who knows how long that will last. Christine is busy playing with Michael Vincent and Hank is with Dad, but that can change very quickly."

Eager to finally make love to his wife, Booth removed his shirt and then his shorts. "God you're so beautiful Bones. So damn beautiful."

Ooooooooooooooooooooooo

Tired but satisfied, Booth fell asleep while Brennan lay on the bed and watched him sleep. Their intimate moment had been satisfying for both of them and Brennan was certain that Booth had not hurt himself. A knock on the door and Brennan rolled off of the bed, grabbed Booth's shirt and slipped it on, buttoning it up completely. The hem of the shirt came down mid-thigh and that was modest enough to open the door.

Angela grinned when Brennan opened the door and glanced through the opening to see Booth sound asleep. "I didn't want to bother you, but Hank is crying and well, he wants his mother. He skinned his knee and we cleaned up the scrape and put a Spiderman Band-Aid on it, but he still wants you."

Brennan nodded her head. "Where is he?"

Angela pointed over her shoulder. "In the kitchen. It's really just a small scrape."

"Alright, give me a minute and I'll be right there." After the door was closed, she slipped off Booth's shirt and replaced it with a pair of shorts, a bra and a t-shirt. Before she left the bedroom, Brennan leaned over Booth and kissed his cheek. Her husband was doing well and this vacation was turning out better than she had hoped.

Oooooooooooooooooooooo

Much to Cam's annoyance, Michelle spent a lot of time with Fisher. For the life of her, she didn't understand what the two saw in each other. That morning they had taken a long walk along the beach and once they were back, they had changed into swim suits and played in the surf together. Sitting on the back porch next to Booth, Cam sighed deeply. "I just don't understand."

Booth glanced at Michelle and saw her touch Fisher's arm. "She likes him and he's closer to her age than the rest of us. It's either hang out with us or the kids or Fisher. She's fine."

"If only he wasn't 10 years older than she is and so . . . so gloomy. Do you know I call him Eeyore? He's so depressing."

Not sure if she really wanted his advice, Booth placed his novel down on the table next to him and picked up his bottle of water. "I've talked to him a couple of times since he's been here and he doesn't seem as gloomy as he used to be."

She had noticed that too but that didn't mean a lot. "Well, he's still ten years older that Michelle."

"I'm five years older than Bones." Booth knew that age was relative. He'd been with women his age, older than him and younger than him. "You can't help who you're attracted to. It just happens."

"Oh don't say that." Cam crossed her arms against her breasts. "I'm hoping this is just a friendship."

Booth shrugged his shoulders and finished drinking the water in the bottle. "She's a woman, Cam. You can't turn the clock back."

"Don't I know it." Cam sighed once more. "It just seems like yesterday she was still playing with dolls and she thought all boys had cooties."

Amused, Booth laughed. "Yeah, Christine is growing like a weed. I still have time, but she's probably going to be dating in fifteen years."

Now it was Cam's turn to laugh while she patted Booth's knee. "Dream on Big Guy. More like ten years."

Booth didn't want to think about it. "We'll see." Booth noticed Brennan pick up Hank and step into the water with him on her hip. "Poor little guy. The shell scraped his knee pretty bad."

"It's not really that bad." Cam watched as Hank screamed with laughter when Brennan lowered him so that his feet were in the water and then raised him up to kiss his cheek. "He was just mad because he couldn't find his mother when he was hurt. The minute she came into the kitchen he was fine."

"Yeah." Booth smiled as his son seemed to be enjoying himself. "He's a tough little guy. He rarely cries when he gets hurt. Christine is pretty tough too." His daughter was sitting next to Max talking to him while Michael Vincent was busy building a ramp in the sand so he could play with his cars and trucks. "They're all good kids including Michelle. We have to trust their sense."

Her attention back on Michelle and Fisher, Cam grimly nodded her head. "I suppose. It could be worse, she could be friends with Oliver Wells."

"Geeze, don't say that." Booth scrunched his nose. "That guy pisses me off just being in the same room with me. What an asshole. Michelle has better taste than that."

"True." Cam stood up and stretched her back. "I'm going to go get a Coke. Want one?"

"No, but I'd like another bottle of water if you don't mind." Booth thought about it and added. "And maybe some Oreos."

Cam patted his shoulder and opened the back door. "Oreos and water coming up. I'll be right back."

Once Cam was gone, Booth stood up and walked over to the railing to look up at the sky. It looked like it might rain in a little while and that was fine. He believed you had to have some rain mixed in with the sunshine or the weather would be boring as hell.

Oooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


	13. Chapter 13

(Season 10)

Thank for reviewing my story. I appreciate it.

A/N: this is for daisesndaffidols

I don't own Bones.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

Finally a day came when the only ones at the beach house was Hodgins, Angela and Michael Vincent, Max, Booth and Brennan and their children. After the crowds of people they had played host to since their first week there had finally stayed away, Booth marveled at how peaceful it was now.

Feeling so much better, but still restricted as to how much activity he could do, Booth spent some time on the beach with the children while Brennan, Angela and Hodgins cleaned the house. It was decided that Max would inventory the kitchen and make a list of groceries and cleaning supplies that needed to be replaced. After Brennan was free they would both go to the store down the road for a quick shopping trip. While Hodgins vacuumed the floors both upstairs and down stairs, he noticed some needed repairs that needed to be taken care and jotted them down on a piece of paper. The main problem was the slow running water in the toilet upstairs, but he knew that would be easy to fix. He would just have to go to the hardware store for some parts. The rest of the problems consisted of scuff marks on the walls in the hallway upstairs and Hodgins decided to repaint one of the walls in the game room to cover up the Magic Marker scribbles Hank had written on the wall. He also found the box of Magic Markers and threw them away.

While the activity in the house was consuming the time of most of the adults, Booth played with the children, allowing them to decide what to play. Wary of going into the water, Booth didn't venture in water deeper than his ankles and insisted that the children not enter water deeper than their knees. The water was warm and the sun was hot overhead with little cloud cover to give them relief from the heat. Hats were being worn and plenty of sun screen had been slathered on exposed skin.

Christine and Michael Vincent decided to sit in the water and scoop hands full of sand on their legs and lap. They wanted to see if they could keep from partially floating and thought the sand would hold them down. Hank didn't understand what the other children were doing so he sat down on the edge of the beach and moved a toy boat through the water.

Booth kept a sharp eye on all three children and occasionally rescued Hank's boat if it sailed out of his hand. During one rescue, Booth stepped on something hard that made him stumble and almost fall. Curious, he carefully squatted in the water and using his hand tried to dig the sand away from the object. His intent was to remove the object from the sand so no one else would step on it and hurt themselves.

Curious, the children abandoned their game and came over to watch what Booth was doing. Hank tried to move deeper in to the water where his father was, but Christine grabbed his hand and held on tight. The boy whined, but Christine knew that Hank shouldn't go any deeper into the water than his knees.

While digging the sand away from the object, the water had grown cloudier than normal and Booth knew he'd probably have to wait to see what it was he was uncovering. Finally it seemed like he could pull on the object to free it from the rest of the sand and when he did, he was shocked to find a bone in his hand, a human bone. "For God's sake! Why?"

Their mouths open in surprise, Christine looked at the bone and then laughed. "Oh boy, Mommy is going to love to see that." Quickly placing Hank's hand in one of Michael Vincent's hands, she turned and raced out of the water, up the sandy beach to the porch and quickly opened the door to enter the house.

Michael Vincent continued to stare at the bone and finally asked a question. "Can't you just throw it away, Uncle Booth? I don't want Mommy and Daddy to go back to work yet."

Holding the bone in his hand and waiting for his wife to arrive, Booth sighed. "I wish I could Champ, but I can't. I'm an FBI Agent and the FBI wouldn't like that not to mention Bones."

The door to the beach house suddenly opened and every adult that had been in the house stepped out onto the porch and hurried down to the water where Booth was waiting.

"Christine says you found a human bone." Brennan arrived first and took the bone from Booth. "A fractured tibia . . . have you looked for the rest of the skeleton? Is there more?"

Resigned to the fact that his summer beach house was now part of a possible crime scene, Booth stood up and pointed at his feet. "No I haven't. Feel free to look. I'm taking the kids inside the house."

A chorus of shouts from the children protesting Booth's plan only made Booth more irritated. "You're going in the house and that's final."

Max picked up Hank and carried him up the beach to the house while Booth grabbed one of Christine's and Michael Vincent's hands and pulled them up the beach to the porch. Once they were there, Booth paused and looked back at the beach to see what his wife and friends were doing. Brennan was on her knees in the water scooping sand away from something while Hodgins knelt next to her. Angela stood with her arms crossed against her breasts staring in disbelief at the emerging bone in Brennan's hand.

The kids were still protesting and Booth knew that they were going to keep showing their displeasure when they went into the house, so he decided to compromise. "Okay, you can sit on the porch and watch, but the first person that leaves this porch and steps on to the beach will be in big trouble . . . really big trouble."

Grateful that they weren't going to miss all of the fun, Christine and Michael Vincent stood next to the rail and watched their parents avidly. Booth didn't want to leave the children on the porch alone by themselves just in case they decided to sneak back down to the beach to get a closer look, so he had no choice but to stay with them. After he grabbed a towel from a stack sitting on the cases of water on the porch, Booth pulled on the chain that started the ceiling fan blades to turn, then sat down and wiped off his feet, making sure the sand was brushed off. Next he poured a bottle of water on the towel and wiped at the scar on his stomach and then his feet and legs to make sure they were clean. Once that was done, he wadded up the damp towel and threw it on the floor near his feet. His arms folded against his chest, he glared at the activity on the beach and wondered why bodies seemed to turn up when he didn't want them to.

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

Detective Anthony Dickman held a notebook in his hand while he began his interview. "Okay, Mr. Booth, explain to me what happened."

"FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth of Major Crimes." Booth waited for Dickman to acknowledge his title which the detective did.

"Agent Booth."

"Me and the kids were playing on the beach about an hour ago while my wife and friends were in the house." Booth found it very strange to be in the position he was in, but he didn't really care that much. "My son was playing with his boat when it got away from him. I stepped deeper in the water to get it before it went too far when I stepped on something and I almost fell. I worried that someone would get hurt if they stepped on it too, so I dug it out of the sand. I can't lift anything over five pounds because I'm recovering from a gunshot wound, so I figured if it was big or too heavy I'd get Dr. Hodgins and my father-in-law, Max Keenan to move it out of the water. When I freed enough of it I found out it was a bone. My daughter told my wife and she came to look at it. My wife is Dr. Temperance Brennan and is the leading forensic anthropologist in this country. She works for the Jeffersonian and identifies bodies for the FBI."

"I know who Dr. Brennan is and I know who you are." Dickman jotted down a few quick notes. "Did you recognize the body?"

Puzzled, Booth stared at the detective to see if he was serious. "There is no body. I uncovered a leg bone, it was broke by the way. When I found that, I stopped digging and I let me wife and Dr. Hodgins handle the rest."

"So you don't know who the victim is?" Dickman made a few more notes and waited for Booth's answer.

Trying to be patient, Booth pursed his lips for a second to keep from replying with sarcasm. "No, one leg bone looks like any other leg bone as far as I'm concerned." Okay, he failed with the sarcasm, but what the hell. "Now if my wife is allowed to work on the case, she'll be able to figure out who the victim is."

Dickman shrugged his shoulders and glanced down the beach where an almost complete skeleton was laying on the beach. "We'll see." Pausing to make one final note, Dickman turned his attention back to Booth. "I don't want you to leave town for a few days until we work out your alibi."

"My alibi?" Booth stood up and lifted his shirt displaying his scar. "Listen Detective, I'm recovering from being shot. I couldn't lug some body around and bury it if I wanted to and I don't want to." After he lowered his shirt, Booth crossed his arms against his chest. "Plus it's not a body, it's a skeleton . . . no meat, so it's been here for quite a while. You're barking up the wrong tree."

Amused, Dickman smiled and shook his head. "Simmer down, there Agent Booth. You know the drill. Everyone is a suspect until they aren't. I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't check out your story." The detective glanced back at the skeleton. "I wish Dr. Brennan had left the skeleton in the sand for my techs to remove. She may have contaminated my crime scene."

"If you plan on accusing Dr. Brennan of contaminating the crime scene please let me be there when you do." Booth smiled. "That should be pretty entertaining."

The detective knew about Brennan's reputation and there was no way under the sun he was going to do any such thing. "Yeah, no . . . if anyone does that it won't be me. Stay here." Dickman patted Booth's shoulder and walked down the beach to talk to Brennan and Hodgins.

Booth watched the detective join the small crowd standing near the bones and decided that he wanted to go home as soon as possible. This was work and not a vacation as far as he was concerned.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

Agent James Aubrey walked around the beach house and found his friend sitting on the back porch with his wife. They were talking quietly, but stopped as soon as they spied Aubrey. "So a body huh?"

"Not a body, a skeleton." Brennan wanted to make sure Aubrey wasn't misinformed. "Booth discovered it when he stepped on it near the shoreline." Brennan pointed at the area where several techs were working. "Hodgins and I offered to help work the crime scene, but our expertise was refused. He's upstairs painting one of the walls in the game room. Hank decided to draw on the wall using a Magic Marker."

He could see that Brennan was irritated by being sidelined, but it wasn't really an FBI case at the moment. Brennan had called Aubrey right after she'd called the Norfolk Police Department to let him know about the skeleton and Aubrey had let his bosses know as soon as possible. Deputy Director Stark had sent Aubrey to Norfolk to offer FBI assistance and to check on Booth and his team when he heard about the skeleton behind the beach house. The last thing Stark wanted was one of his agents arrested for murder, especially not Booth. "Do you know who's in charge of the case right now?"

Booth pointed at the medium built, sandy haired man standing near the bones. His tan pants and light brown jacket were starting to look dirty from being exposed to sand and spray from the small tide rolling in and out. "Detective Dickman . . . yes that's his real last name."

His lips pursed, Aubrey saw that his friend was serious. "Okay, Seeley." Moving away from the porch, the FBI Agent couldn't help but chuckle.

Not sure what the joke was about, Brennan placed her hand on Booth's knee. "What is the joke? I don't understand."

"My name is a joke. That's the joke." Annoyed, Booth glared at his friend as he reached Detective Dickman's side. "I think we should pack up and go home as soon as Dickman clears me and you. This isn't a vacation anymore, it's a crime scene and I don't want the kids here anymore."

Staring at the techs kneeling next to the skeleton, Brennan nodded her head. "Alright . . . they really should take advantage of my expertise, but if they feel they can do without me then the failure will be theirs."

Standing, Booth took Brennan's hand in his and smiled. "Come on, let's go inside and start packing. We can probably leave tomorrow morning if Dickman is any good at his job. Hodgins and Angela can stay if they want to."

With a last glance at the possible crime scene, Brennan stood up and followed Booth into the house. She felt that Detective Dickman was being foolish, but it was his choice to make.

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

It took two days before Detective Dickman decided that Booth and Brennan had nothing to do with the skeleton that Booth had found at the beach. Once they were given permission to leave, Hodgins and Brennan loaded up the Brennan/Booth luggage into Brennan's car while Max loaded his luggage into his car wtih the help of Angela. While that was going on Booth and the kids did a treasure hunt in the front yard. Booth had thrown a handful of change in the yard before the children came outside to start their hunt and was quite pleased with himself when Christine and Michael started to find their treasure. The children squealed with delight every time they found a coin and hurried on to their next find.

Once the luggage was loaded, Brennan and Booth bid farewell to Hodgins and Angela and both hugged Michael Vincent. "I had a good time Hodgins. You and Bones had the right idea."

"Yeah, I thought so too." Hodgins handed Booth a bag of Oreos and grinned. "A snack for the road."

Booth gladly took the bag and saw it was a full bag. "Thanks. We'll see you guys when you come back home."

Angela hugged Brennan once more and kissed Christine and Hank. "You guys be careful on the road. Let me know when you get home."

"We will." Brennan carried Hank to her car and strapped him into his car seat while Booth supervised Christine to make sure she buckled up correctly in the passenger seat next to her little brother. Once that was done, the adults got into the front seat and waited for Max to get into his car and motion that he was ready to go.

Before Brennan started the car, Booth carefully leaned over and kissed Brennan's cheek. "Thanks Bones. I didn't want to come, but I ended up having fun . . . well except for that skeleton thing, but every vacation has set backs."

Happy that Booth was recovering so well, Brennan returned his kiss and smiled. "Now you can watch your games at home without competing for the television."

"Yeah, that will be nice." Booth leaned back and waved at Hodgins and Angela while Brennan started to drive down the driveway. "We should get a swimming pool, don't you think so?"

As she turned onto the road, Brennan nodded her head. "Yes, I think we should. There is plenty of room in the backyard. Of course the leaves will be a problem when the trees shed their leaves each fall and of course the pool will have to be cleaned every day whether we use it or not and we'll have to buy a pool cover for the winter . . . oh and we'll need to have a fence installed around the pool because of city ordinances and also we'll need to install an alarm system so that if Hank falls in we can rescue him before he drowns."

Astonished at her list, Booth finally sighed. "Let's not get a pool."

Brennan smiled and kept her eyes on the road ahead. "Of course, if that's what you wish."

Oooooooooooooooooo

That's it. This story is finished. I hope you liked it.


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